DeAnza College Astronomy 04 Test 3 Fall 2005 Multiple Choice: Identify the letter of the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. Mark choice on Scantron. 1. The lunar maria are a. the lava plains of the lunar lowlands. b. the smooth plateaus of the lunar highlands c. less than one billion years old. d. moving plates of lunar crust. e. older than the lunar highlands. 2. That Mercury has a large iron core is evidenced by a. the large lobate scarps. b. the large mean density of Mercury. c. the lava flows near Caloris Basin. d. all of the above e. none of the above 3. Caloris Basin on Mercury is believed to be a. a dry sea floor. b. an impact basin filled with lava flows. c. a network of lobate scarps. d. jumbled terrain. e. a sinuous rille. 4. As the moon revolves around the Earth, a. it keeps one side always towards the sun. b. it rotates on its axis about once every earth day. c. it keeps one side always toward the earth. d. the moon makes two rotations on its axis for every revolution. e. the moon makes one rotation on its axis for every two revolutions. 5. Which hypothesis concerning the formation of the moon makes predictions that best fit the observed lunar data? a. The large impact hypothesis b. The fission hypothesis c. The capture hypothesis d. The co-accretion hypothesis e. The regolith hypothesis 6. are believed to have formed on Mercury when the planet's interior cooled and shrank. a. Jumbled terrain b. The highlands c. Maria d. Lobate scarps e. Sinuous rilles
7. The moon's highlands a. contain a large number of sinuous rilles b. are older than the maria. c. contain relatively few craters compared to the lowlands. d. were formed as the result of a large meteorite impact on the opposite side of the moon. e. contain large amounts of sedimentary rock. 8. Of the following hypotheses, which one best explains the origin of the moon? a. large impact hypothesis b. capture hypothesis c. liquid drop hypothesis d. co-accretion hypothesis e. fission hypothesis True/False Indicate whether the sentence or statement is true or false. Mark choice on Scantron. 9. On the moon, the maria are younger than the highlands. 10. The U.S. Apollo Program accomplished the objective of collecting and returning moon rocks to Earth. 11. The Moon is about one-quarter the diameter of Earth and about one-quarter of Earth's mass. 12. The Moon is an airless world which does not possess a measurable atmosphere. 13. The Moon has an internal structure very similar to Earth with a rocky mantle and metallic core. 14. The Moon possesses a magnetic field due to a dynamo effect generated in its metallic core. 15. The lighter areas of the Moon, as seen from Earth, are vast, relatively smooth lava plains dated to about 3.8 billion years ago. 16. The Fission Theory of the Moon's origin suggests the Moon broke off from Earth. 17. The Capture Theory of the Moon's origin is not accepted by many astronomers because of its high improbability mechanically. 18. The Sister Theory of the Moon's origin suggests the Moon formed when a giant planetesimal struck Earth and threw material off into space. 19. Mercury is the 2nd smallest planet in the Solar System. Only Pluto is smaller. 20. Mercury has the largest diurnal (day to night) temperatures range of any planet in the solar system. 21. The only spacecraft to photograph the planet Mercury was Mariner 10 in 1974 and 1975.
Match the following planetary characteristics with either Venus or Mars or neither or both planets. 22. Earth's "sister' planet a. Venus 23. The Red Planet b. Mars 24. A little more than half the size of Earth c. Characteristic of both planets 25. A very dense atmosphere 100 times the density of Earth's atmosphere. 26. Clouds composed of Sulfuric Acid. 27. Polar caps 28. A rotation rate of a little more than 24 hours. 29. Volcanoes 30. Dry riverbeds indicating presence of water in the past. 31. Rotating retrograde (opposite the direction of rotation of other planets). 32. Primary atmospheric gas is carbon dioxide. 33. Has a very thin atmosphere when compared with Earth. 34. Has craters on its surface. 35. Displays a huge impact basin known as Caloris Basin. d. Characteristic of neither planet. 36. Features a huge canyon over 3,000 miles long known as Vallis Marineris. 37 Has no Moons. 38. Is an inferior planet which is visible from Earth before sunrise or after sunset. 39. Shows evidence for a warmer and wetter climate in the distant past. Multiple Choice: Mark your answer on Scantron form. 40. The planet Jupiter a) Is the largest of the planets. b) Has a strong magnetic field. c) Has a greater equatorial than polar diameter because of its rapid rotation. d) All of the above are correct.
41. When compared with all the other planets of the Solar System, Jupiter emits relatively strong electromagnetic radiation in the a) radio wave portion of the electromagnetic spectrum b) visible light portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. c) X-ray region of the spectrum. d) Gamma ray potion of the electromagnetic spectrum. e) Jupiter absorbs far more energy than it radiates. 42. The equatorial clouds belts of the planet Saturn are a) Significantly more prominent than those of the planet Jupiter. b) About equal in prominence to those of the planet Jupiter. c) Not as prominent as those of the planet Jupiter. 43. The equatorial cloud belts of the planet Jupiter represent regions of a) Strong horizontal winds only. b) Strong horizontal winds as well as vertical wind currents. c) Strong vertical winds only. d) The cloud belts of Jupiter have no relationship to the planet's wind system. 44. When the Voyager 2 spacecraft flew past the planet Uranus it observed a) Very prominent belts of clouds similar to those of Jupiter. b) Virtually no clouds in the atmosphere at all. 45. The Great Red Spot is a storm in the upper cloud layers of the planet a) Jupiter. b) Saturn c) Uranus d) Neptune 46. The Great Dark Spot is a prominent cloud feature in the upper cloud layers of the planet a) Jupiter. b) Saturn c) Uranus d) Neptune e) The Great Dark Spot is not a recognized cloud feature on any planet. 47. The Galilean Moons of Jupiter are a) Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto. b) Io, Europa, Ganymede and Titan c) Phobos and Deimos. d) Titan and Triton. e) The planet Jupiter has no Moons.
True or False: Mark your answer on Scantron. 48. The planet Pluto is the only planet in the Solar System not to possess a natural satellite or moon. 49. All of the Giant Planets of the Solar System posses either full or partial ring systems. 50. Pluto is the smallest of all the planets in the Solar System. Extra Credit: True or False. 51. Gary Flandro discovered the alignment of planets that made possible the Voyager 2 fly-by of the Giant Planets. 52. The Pioneer Spacecraft discovered that Jupiter had no radiation belts. 53. Jupiter s moon Ganymede is larger than the planet Mercury. 54. Jupiter has the strongest atmospheric winds of any planet in the Solar System. 55. Saturn s moon Titan is the only moon with an atmosphere.