Ch 11+12

Question 1

Giant Planets Composition

Answer 1

• Gases: hydrogen, helium
• Ices: water, methane, ammonia
• Rocks: magnesium, silicon, iron, etc.

Question 2

“Gas Giants”

Answer 2

Jupiter + Saturn

Question 3

“Ice Giants”

Answer 3

Uranus + Neptune

Question 4

Jupiter Rotation

Answer 4

9 hours 56 minutes, shortest day of any planet due to magnetic field deep inside planet

Question 5

Jupiter Spin Axis

Answer 5

3 degrees tilt, no seasons

Question 6

Saturn Spin Axis

Answer 6

27 degrees tilt, does have seasons

Question 7

Neptune Spin Axis

Answer 7

29 degrees tilt, similar seasons, just more slowly

Question 8

Uranus Spin Axis

Answer 8

98 degrees tilt north, basically orbits on its side

Question 9

Jupiter Internal Structure

Answer 9

Rock, Ice, Metallic Hydrogen, Molecular Hydrogen

Question 10

Saturn Internal Strucure

Answer 10

Rock, Ice, Metallic Hydrogen (less), Molecular Hydrogen

Question 11

Uranus + Neptune Internal Structure

Answer 11

Rock, Ice, Molecular Hydrogen

Question 12

Internal Energy of Giant Planets

Answer 12

• Jupiter, most
• Saturn, half of Jupiter
• Neptune, small internal energy source
• Uranus, no measurable amount of internal heat

Question 13

Jupiter’s Magnetic Field

Answer 13

• Very very strong

- Axis of mag. field is 10 degrees, different from axis of rotation

Question 14

Voyager 2

Answer 14

Toured all of the outer planets

Question 15

Direct / Regular Orbits

Answer 15

Roughly 1/3 of moons in outer solar system have these orbits – revolve parent planet west to east in plane of equator

Question 16

Retrograde

Answer 16

Orbit in east to west direction

Question 17

High Eccentricity Orbit

Answer 17

More elliptical orbit than circular

Question 18

High Inclination Orbit

Answer 18

Moving in and out of planet’s equatorial plane

Question 19

Jupiter’s Moons

Answer 19

67 known moons: Callisto, Ganymede, Europa, Io

Question 20

Saturn’s Moons

Answer 20

62 known moons: Titan - only moon with substantial atmosphere + lakes or seas of liquid hydrocarbons, Enceladus - active geysers

Question 21

Saturn’s Rings

Answer 21

Broad + flat with few major and many minor gaps | huge collection of icy fragments

Question 22

Uranus System

Answer 22

Tilted at 98 degrees; 11 rings, 27 known moons

Question 23

Neptune Moons

Answer 23

14 known moons: Triton

Question 24

Uranus + Neptune’s Rings

Answer 24

Narrow + Faint, made of dark materials

Question 25

Callisto

Answer 25

17 day orbit, keeps same face toward Jupiter - water ice is stable; same size as Mercury

Question 26

Ganymede

Answer 26

largest moon in solar system; great deal of cratering; fully differentiated; mantle and crust of ice “floating” above rock core

Question 27

Europa

Answer 27

ice-covered surface; has unusually straight lines on icy crust; might have large ocean of liquid water under its ice

Question 28

Io

Answer 28

Innermost moon of Jupiter; high level of volcanism (>100); size of Moon; tidal heating

Question 29

Titan

Answer 29

thick atmosphere of CO, hydrocarbons, methane, ethane, propane; 1.6 bars; lakes, rivers, falling rain

Question 30

Triton

Answer 30

Neptune’s largest moon; 75% rock, 25% water ice; have impact craters, flooded “lava”, mountainous terrain; nitrogen geysers

Question 31

Pluto

Answer 31

4 small moons; dwarf planet; different orbit around Sun

Question 32

Pluto’s Surface

Answer 32

frozen methane, carbon monoxide, nitrogen

Question 33

New Horizons

Answer 33

2006, spacecraft that observed Pluto

Question 34

Charon

Answer 34

Pluto’s Moon; half Pluto’s size; Charon + Pluto keep same sides to each other

Question 35

Breakup Hypothesis

Answer 35

Rings are the remains of a shattered moon, tidal forces pulled the fragments apart, and they dispersed into a disk

Question 36

Secondary Ring Hypothesis

Answer 36

Suggests rings are made of particles that were unable to come together to form a moon

Question 37

Saturn Ring Names

Answer 37

outer>inner, A, B, C with B being the brightest

Question 38

Cassini Division

Answer 38

Wide gap between A and B Rings in Saturn

Question 39

Occultation

Answer 39

Passage of one astronomical object in front of another

Question 40

Epsilon Ring

Answer 40

Outermost & Most massive of Uranus’ rings; twice radius of Uranus

Question 41

Resonance

Answer 41

When two objects have orbital periods that are exact rations of each other

Question 42

F Ring

Answer 42

Saturn’s narrow ring that contains apparent ringlets