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Visions of the Universe > Exam 2 > Flashcards

Exam 2 Flashcards

1
Q

Which of the following three kinds of objects resides closer to the sun on average?

A

asteroids

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2
Q

What is the largest terrestrial planet and jovian planet?

A

Earth and Jupiter

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3
Q

Are Earth-sized planets orbiting sun-like stars common?

A

They may be common, though we cannot yet detect them

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4
Q

Most extrasolar planets discovered so far probably resemble?

A

jovian planets

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5
Q

What is the hottest planet in the Solar system?

A

Venus

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6
Q

Is our moon about the same size as moons of the other terrestrial planets?

A

No

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7
Q

Are the weather conditions on Mars different from what they were in the past?

A

Yes very different

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8
Q

Can moons have atmospheres, volcanoes, or liquid water?

A

yes

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9
Q

Is Saturn the only planet with rings?

A

No

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10
Q

Does Neptune orbit the Sun in the opposite direction of all the other planets?

A

No

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11
Q

If Pluto was as large as Mercury would we classify it as a terrestrial planet?

A

No

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12
Q

What are asteroids made of?

A

The same stuff as the terrestrial planets

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13
Q

How do scientists know that our solar system is about 4 billion years old?

A

Radiometric dating

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14
Q

What physical law explains why an interstellar cloud will rotate rapidly as it collapses?

A

the law of conservation of angular momentum

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15
Q

What physical law explains why an interstellar cloud heats up as it collapses?

A

the law of conservation of energy

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16
Q

Explain why the collapsing interstellar cloud should form a disk?

A

Colliding cloud particles exchange angular momentum and on average, end up with the rotation pattern for the cloud as a whole

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17
Q

What property of our solar system supports the nebular theory?

A

all the planets orbit the sun in the same direction and in nearly the same plane

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18
Q

Why did terrestrial planets form in the inner solar system and jovian in the outer?

A

Ices condensed only in the outer solar system, where some icy planetesimals grew large enough to attract gas from the nebula, while only rock and metal condensed in the inner solar system

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19
Q

Based on the nebular theory, what should we expect to be true for other star systems?

A

2 types of planets, planetary systems should be common, planets will orbit in nearly the same plane, and jovian planets will be further away than terrestrial planets

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20
Q

Rank the materials that make up the solar nebula from highest abundance to lowest.

A

hydrogen and helium, hydrogen compounds, rock, metals

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21
Q

Rank the materials that make up the solar nebula from highest temperature at which each would condense into a solid to lowest

A

metals, rock, hydrogen compounds, hydrogen and helium

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22
Q

Rank the materials that make up the solar nebula from furthest to closest distance from the sun at which they could condense into a solid

A

hydrogen compounds, rock, metals, helium and hydrogen do not condense

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23
Q

Which heat source continues to contribute to Earth’s internal heat?

A

radioactive decary

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24
Q

Which of the planet’s fundamental properties has the greatest effect on its level of volcanic and tectonic activity?

A

size

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25
Q

What do we conclude if a planet has few impact craters of any size?

A

other geological processes have wiped out craters

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26
Q

What is a strong greenhouse gas?

A

water vapor

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27
Q

Which describes our understanding of flowing water on Mars?

A

It was important once, but no longer

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28
Q

Which terrestrial world has the most atmospheric gas?

A

Venus

29
Q

The oxygen in Earth’s atmosphere was released by?

A

life

30
Q

Where is most CO2 that has outgassed from Earth’s volcanoes?

A

locked up in rocks

31
Q

Why is Jupiter denser than Saturn?

A

its higher mas and gravity compress its interior

32
Q

Why is Io more volcanically active than our moon?

A

Io has a different internal heat source

33
Q

Is Neptune or Uranus bigger in radius?

A

Uranus

34
Q

Is Neptune or Uranus bigger in mass?

A

Neptune

35
Q

Did a large terrestrial planet ever form in the region of the asteroid belt?

A

No, because Jupiter prevented one from accreting

36
Q

How often does a 1km object strike the Earth?

A

every million years

37
Q

What would happen if a 1km object struck the Earth?

A

it would cause widespread devastation and climate change

38
Q

What are trojan asteroids?

A

asteroids that share Jupiter’s orbit of the sun

39
Q

Where are Oort cloud objects thought to have formed?

A

in the region of the Jovian planets before they were kicked out

40
Q

What does Pluto most resemble?

A

a comet

41
Q

Which planet rotates slowly in the opposite direction of Earth?

A

Venus

42
Q

What is Jupiter and Saturn composed of?

A

hydrogen and helium

43
Q

Which planet hosts the Galilean moons?

A

Jupiter

44
Q

What are the Galilean moons?

A

Io, Europa, Ganymede, Callisto

45
Q

What is Uranus and Neptune composed of?

A

hydrogen, helium, and hydrogen compounds

46
Q

What is the largest moon in the solar system?

A

Ganymede

47
Q

What makes Triton special?

A

orbits backwards, possibly captured

48
Q

What is the astrometric technique?

A

take measurements of the star’s position over time, if its wobbling a planet is there

49
Q

What is the doppler technique?

A

looks for shifts in the stars spectrum, can tell you how big a planet is

50
Q

What is the transits and eclipses technique?

A

dip in the light from the star when the planet travels in front of the star

51
Q

Where is the planet cores the highest density?

A

terrestrial planets

52
Q

What causes the magnetic field?

A

internal heat, charged particles move within the liquid outer core

53
Q

What does the atmosphere protect us from?

A

UV and Xrays

54
Q

What does the greenhouse effect do?

A

traps infrared light and warms the planet

55
Q

What do Mars’ frozen ice caps contain?

A

CO2

56
Q

What are the 4 requirements for life on a planet?

A

surface liquid water, oxygen and ozone in the atmosphere, plate tectonics, and climate stability

57
Q

When was the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere greater than any other point in history?

A

right now

58
Q

What is weather on the Jovian planets driven by?

A

heat from the sun and within the planets

59
Q

What is significant about Io?

A

most volcanic world in the solar system through tidal heating

60
Q

What is significant about Europa?

A

It is covered by water ice with an interior with tidal heating

61
Q

What is significant about Ganymede?

A

largest moon in the solar system

62
Q

What is significant about Callisto?

A

heavily cratered ice ball

63
Q

What is a meteor?

A

the flash of light from a particle entering our atmosphere at a high speed

64
Q

What is a meteorite?

A

what survives the fall and lands on earth

65
Q

What is a primitive meteorite?

A

made of simple mixtures of rock and metal, around 4.6 billion years old

66
Q

What is a processed meteorite?

A

piece of a large asteroid that underwent differentiation

67
Q

What are Oort cloud objects?

A

comets: leftover ice rich planetesimals

68
Q

What are Kuiper belt objects?

A

ice balls that are smaller than inner planets but larger than Oort cloud objects

Visions of the Universe (4 decks)

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