Blue Planet Part 3
Which color main sequence stars are the most massive?
blue
Which color stars have the highest surface temperature?
blue
Why are the continents about 20 times older than the oldest ocean basins?
both of the above
The rate of decay of radioactive materials
can be experimentally calculated
Which of the following is not evidence supporting plate tectonics?
changes in lunar tides
A star's spectral class is determined by the _____ of the star.
color
Which of the following is not a method used to measure the speed of plate movement?
continental cores
The volcanic mountain range of the Andes is defined as a
continental volcanic arc
The principle mechanism by which heat is transferred from deep inside the Earth to the base of the lithosphere is
convection
Along what type of plate boundary does subduction occur?
convergent
What type of plate boundary created the Andes Mountains?
convergent
Heavy elements likely originated from
cores of stars
Differentiation is a process by which
denser materials sink and less dense materials rise to the surface
Along what type of plate boundary does seafloor spreading occur?
divergent
Earth's seasons are influenced by the planet's tilt and
elliptical orbit
Earth's diameter is increasing significantly due to the generation of new ocean crust.
false
Modern continental shorelines conincide exactly with the edges of the original oceanic rift.
false
The age of the solar system is about 4.6 million years old.
false
The innermost planets in the solar system (Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars) are large and gaseous.
false
The outermost planets in the solar system (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune) are small, dense, and rocky.
false
According to the View: What Does a Black Hole Look Like, Charles Liu states that, the ______ you move through space, the ______ you move through time.
faster slower
According to the Life Cycle of Stars, hydrogen atoms are fused together to produce ______ and it creates the energy that powers every star in a process called fusion.
helium
According to the Life Cycle of Stars, when ________ runs out, the star becomes hotter and denser.
hydrogen
The Jovian planets have atmospheres primarily composed of
hydrogen
As the Sun continues to age, the chemical composition of its core will change. Over time, it will contain a lower percentage of ________ and a greater percentage of ______.
hydrogen helium
The asteroid belt is located
in orbit between Mars and Jupiter
A star directly above the Sun on H-R diagram would generally be ______ than the Sun.
larger
About 85% of the stars plotted on the H-R diagram fall on or close to a smooth curve that astronomers refer to as the
main sequence region
The region of the H-R diagram occupied by most stars is the
main sequence region
The source of Earth's magnetic field lies in its
molten outer core
The prevailing model for the origin of the solar system is the
nebular hypothesis
The principle of uniformitarianism is based on the idea that the geologic processes that occur today likely
occurred in the past
Radiometric dating is possible if a rock contains a measureable amount of
parent and daughter isotopes
A gathering of more and more bits of solid matter from surrounding space
planetary accretion
All of the terrestrial planets have lost their
primordial or primary atmospheres
Numerical age is usually determined by characterizing an object's
radioactive decay
Which has been used to determine the age of the Earth?
radiometric dating
Which of the following are the potential ways that the lithosphere move?
rising magma pushing on the plates parts of a plate that are sinking into the asthenosphere drag ... an entire plate slides into the asthenosphere
____________ are flashes of x-ray energy coming from the sun.
solar flares
__________ is the outward force from the sun that extends to past the planets.
solar wind
What supports and sustains almost all life on Earth?
sunlight
Where is active seafloor spreading occurring today?
the Red Sea
What is the Benioff Zone?
the contact zone where one slab of lithosphere subducts beneath another slab of lithosphere
Apparent polar wandering is best explained by
the movement of the continents
In the View: Magnetic Reversal, how can we tell that the magnetic field has flipped?
the orientation of magnetic minerals in lava layers
The luminosity of a star is defined as the
total energy emitted per second
What type of plate boundary is associated with the San Andreas Fault in California?
transform
As the plates of a transform fault grind past one another, their edges may grab and lock, forcing the rocks on both sides to flex and bend.
true
Measuring the speed and direction of movement of lithospheric plates requires a fixed frame of reference such as distant stars.
true
Since Pangea, the lithosphere has broken into 9 major plates and a large number of smaller plates?
true
Studies of rock paleomagnetism have revealed the ancient positions of Earth's magnetic poles.
true
Subduction zones are marked by deep trenches where ocean-capped lithosphere sinks into the asthenosphere.
true
How far away is the Earth from the Sun?
1 Astronomical Unit
The main factors that influenced the evolution of the terrestrial planets shortly after their formation were impact cratering, volcanism, proximity to the Sun, and absence or presence of a biosphere.
true
The nebular hypothesis proposes that the solar system formed from a huge, swirling cloud of cosmic gas and dust.
true
The planets formed when bits of solid matter from the solar nebula were drawn together by gravitational attraction and accretion.
true
Venus, unlike Earth, Mercury, and Mars spins / rotates in a retrograde motion.
true
What is the dark central part of a sun spot called?
umbra
A terrestrial planet's secondary atmosphere was created from
volatile gases from the planet's interior
Solar energy is trapped on Earth primarily because of the atmosphere's ___________ content.
water vapor
What is a subduction zone?
where one lithospheric plate is dragged or pushed below another lithospheric plate
Which of the following statements is true for the asthenosphere?
zone in the upper mantle that is solid but capable of flowing like a liquid
Which is the smallest planet in the solar system?
Mercury
What is the order of planets, from closest to the Sun to furthest from the Sun?
Mercury Venus Earth Mars Jupiter Saturn Uranus Neptune
Using information learned from the View: The Solar System, please match the planets to the correct information.
Mercury ---> terrestrial Venus ---> terrestrial Earth ---> terrestrial Saturn ---> Jovian Neptune ---> Jovian
The average distance from Earth to the Sun is about 149,600,000 km. This distance is known as
astronomical unit
Icy comets that were originally orbiting in the inner part of the solar system could have met which of several fates?
all of the above
Numerical age is expressed as the
amount of time when a specific event happened
What is the widely accepted age of the universe?
13.7 billion years
The solar system is comprised of eight planets. All of the planets (other than Mercury and Venus) have one or more moons. How many moons have been observed?
170 known moons
A typical rate of seafloor spreading along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge is
2 to 4 cm/year
The break-up of Pangea to form our modern-day continents started about how long ago?
200 million years ago
According to the Explore: MESSENGER and the Science of Mercury, what was the distance of the closest approach that Messenger made over Mercury?
3.4 miles
The Sun is massive enough to keep burning on the Main Sequence for another
5 billion years
If Pluto is not a planet (but rather a dwarf planet), then where do astronomers believe its point of origin
A comet from the Kuiper Belt
Match the following correctly.
A unifying theory that explains hundreds of years of independent observations of Earth's topographic features ---> plate tectonics Wegener's hypothesis of plate motion is known as ---> continental drift The process by which Pangea was separated came to be known as ---> continental drift The variation of magnetic material directions between sections of oceanic crust of varying ages, which preserves a record of Earth's magnetic field at the time of rock formation ---> paleomagnetism
What is the Kuiper Belt?
A vast repository for comets
How do hot spots and plate tectonics account for the islands of the Hawaiian Island chain varying in age?
As molten material continually seeped from the hot spot, an island would form. As the Pacific Plate continued to move the island locked to the Pacific Plate would move as well. A new island would then form above the hot spot.
Match to the correct definition.
Astronomers classify stars based on their ---> color The peak wavelengths of stars, which are blackbody radiators, are determined by ---> temperature The length of a star's life is primarily determined by its ---> mass The ___________ can be used to describe the history of a star. ---> H-R Diagram A small-mass star will leave a ______ life than a large-mass star ---> longer
According to the information provided in the Explore: New Horizons: Revealing Pluto's Secrets, which of these are true of Pluto? Select all answers that are correct.
Craters can be found on Pluto's surface. Pluto contains rugged mountains up to 3500 meters high. Pluto's atmosphere has a dozen layers of haze.
The highest temperature at which magnetic material can retain permanent magnetization is called
Curie point
Match the margins to the correct descriptions.
Fractures in the lithosphere where two plates move apart ---> divergent Can occur between plates carrying either oceanic crust, continental crust, or both; because of their very different properties, the results of the convergence will be fundamentally different ---> convergent Fractures in the lithosphere where two plates slide past each other, grinding and abrading their edges as they do so. ---> transform
The most widely accepted theory for the formation of the Moon is the
Giant impact model in which material was ripped from the Earth after an impact with a Mars-sized object.
Most of the exoplanets discovered thus far are
Giant planets, most likely resembling Jupiter
This geoloic timescale has been divided into the major chronological divisions of Earth history, which of the following includes all of these divisions?
Hadean Archean Proterozoic Paleozoic Mesozoic Cenozoic
The model in which the Sun at the center of the solar system is called the
Heliocentric model
The Great Red Spot is a hurricane-like storm (twice the size of Earth) that has existed on the surface of Jupiter for over 300 years. How is it possible for this storm to have lasted so long?
Jupiter's thick and turbulent atmosphere keeps the storm alive.
In the View: Alfred Wegener, what was the name of the two continents that were believed to exist after Pangea split?
Laurasia and Gondwana
In the View: Seafloor Spreading, what was one of the boundaries that split Pangea apart?
Mid-Atlantic Ridge
According to Observing Red Planet, what Mars feature is roughly equal in size to the state of Nevada?
Olympus Mons
Which ocean is shrinking because its underlying crust is being subducted under other plates?
Pacific Ocean
Which of the following plates are considered "fast moving"?
Pacific and Nazca
According to the nebular hypothesis
Planets should rotate in the same direction as they revolve around the Sun.
What type of plate margin is the majority of the rim surrounding the Pacific Ocean?
active
What was the first evidence that led Alfred Wegener to suspect that the continents were once connected?
The continents simply looked like they fit together, especially Africa and South America.
The planets orbit the Sun on or close to
The plane of the ecliptic
Which of the following moons has an atmosphere?
Titan
If the ages of the Earth and the Moon are nearly identical, as believed, why are most rocks found on the Moon so much older than rocks found on Earth?
Unlike the Earth, the Moon has no atmosphere to weather rocks or plate tectonic activity to reform rocks.
If the ages of the Earth and the Moon are nearly identical, as believed, why are most rocks found on the Moon so much older than rocks found on Earth?
Unlike the Earth, the Moon has no atmosphere to weather rocks or plate tectonics to destroy rocks.
As per the information in the View: The Solar System, please match the correct planets to the category.
Uranus ---> Ice Giants Neptune ---> Ice Giants Saturn ---> Gas Giants Jupiter ---> Gas Giants
