Astronomy Chapter 10

Which of the following is NOT a correct statement about the rotation of Venus? Venus rotates in roughly the same time period as Earth. Venus has the longest rotation period of any planet in the solar system. Venus rotates in a retrograde way (east to west). the rotation rate of Venus had to be determined from radar measurements.

Venus rotates in roughly the same time period as Earth.

Which one of the following features/phenomena is not seen on Mars? frozen lake dust devil sand dune yardang

frozen lake

Venus has a high albedo because its surface is covered by dust storms light-colored rocks snow volcanic ash clouds

clouds

How might Mars's weakened magnetic field have allowed for major changes in its climate? The heat combined with the magnetic field and disappeared with it. They are completely unrelated. Atmospheric gases were left vulnerable to being stripped into space by solar wind particles. Mars has actually heated up since the magnetic field weakened since the solar rays no longer have such a dense layer to go through.

Atmospheric gases were left vulnerable to being stripped into space by solar wind particles.

Which terrestrial planets have some type of active tectonic activity at the moment? Earth and Mars Earth and Venus Mars and Venus Mercury and Venus

Earth and Venus

Valles Marineris is a deep wide network of chasms stretching for 2500 miles on the surface of Mars. How do we believe such a big set of canyons formed originally? It was made by hundreds of impacts from space billions of years ago. It was produced suddenly by flooding water some four billion years ago. It was scoured out of the Martian sands by the action of the regular dust storms. It was caused by tectonic pressures from deep within the planet.

It was caused by tectonic pressures from deep within the planet.

Why doesn't Venus have seasons like Mars and Earth do? It does not have an ozone layer. all of the above. It is too close to the Sun. Its rotation axis is not tilted. It does not rotate fast enough.

Its rotation axis is not tilted.

The largest volcanoes in the Solar System are found on: Venus Earth Mars Mercury the Moon

Mars

Which of the following show evidence of ancient river beds? Venus Mercury Mars all of the above the Moon

Mars

Why is it so much easier to determine the length of the day on Mars than on Venus? Mars is always much closer to the Earth than Venus. Mars' atmosphere is generally pretty clear (so the surface is visible) while Venus is always cloudy. Mars rotates really slowly so it's easy to follow while Venus rotates very fast. Mars is much larger in diameter than Venus is so it's easier to see.

Mars' atmosphere is generally pretty clear (so the surface is visible) while Venus is always cloudy.

Which of these terrestrial planets is considered geologically dead? Venus Mercury Earth Mars

Mercury

The largest volcano on Mars is called the Red Spot Hellas Olympus Mons Mariner Valley

Olympus Mons

The person who really publicized the idea of canals on Mars and impressed it on the public mind was Asaph Hall Orson Welles Frank Drake Percival Lowell

Percival Lowell

Why does Mars have an overall reddish color when we see its surface from afar? The giant volcanoes on Mars are constantly spewing out reddish lava. This is an optical illusion caused by the Earth's atmosphere scattering the colors of light differently. The material of Mars' surface contains a lot of iron oxide the same chemistry that makes rusting metals look reddish. Mars is completely cloudy and its clouds are make of red materials.

The material of Mars' surface contains a lot of iron oxide the same chemistry that makes rusting metals look reddish.

The planet that most resembles the Earth in size and internal composition is Mars Mercury Venus the Moon

Venus

Astronomers estimate that the plains of Venus are only about 500 to 600 million years old. How do they estimate dates like this? by counting the craters visible on the surface and comparing crater counts to other worlds by looking at the radioactive rock samples that have been returned to Earth from Venus by noting that all the plains on all the terrestrial planets have the same age by looking for little brass plates that give the founding date

by counting the craters visible on the surface and comparing crater counts to other worlds

How have we been able to construct detailed maps of the surface features on Venus? by studying Venus with powerful optical telescopes on spacecraft that were sent to orbit Venus by studying Venus from Earth with powerful telescopes by using radar from spacecraft that were sent to orbit Venus by making computer models of geological processes on Venus by landing spacecraft on the surface for close-up study

by using radar from spacecraft that were sent to orbit Venus

The same gas makes up most of the atmosphere of Mars and Venus is nitrogen ozone carbon dioxide water vapor

carbon dioxide

Where is most of the water on Mars? frozen on the peaks of its tall volcanoes in its polar caps and subsurface ground ice in deep underground deposits in its clouds

in its polar caps and subsurface ground ice

Astronomers believe that Mars formed with a much thicker atmosphere than it has today. Where did it go? it escaped into space (and some later froze out as Mars got cold it was drawn into the crust and mantle of Mars through the enormous cracks of the Mariner Valley canyon system it is trapped in bubbles inside the rocks on the martian surface it was absorbed by the rocks on Mars which are much more absorbent than on Earth

it escaped into space (and some later froze out as Mars got cold

Which of the following statements about the planet Venus is true? it rotates on its axis in the same direction as the Earth does the atmospheric pressure near the surface is about the same as Earth's it has a thick layer of clouds containing sulfuric acid droplets its thick nitrogen-oxygen atmosphere acts like a greenhouse to keep the planet hot

it has a thick layer of clouds containing sulfuric acid droplets

About 75% of the surface of Venus consists of high volcanic plateaus many of which are currently erupting lava lowland lava plains vast criss-crossing chanels carrying liquid lava wall-to-wall impact craters

lowland lava plains

The polar caps on Mars are composed of mostly water ice and some solid carbon dioxide pure solid carbon dioxide mostly solid carbon dioxide and some water ice pure water ice

mostly solid carbon dioxide and some water ice

A crucial difference that helps explain why Venus is so hot and the Earth isn't is that on Earth there is additional argon which exerts a tremendous cooling effect. on Venus nearly all CO2 exist in the atmosphere causing a strong Greenhouse effect on Venus the rocks have enormous amounts of radioactivity heating up the environment. there are no volcanoes on Venus but many on Earth to produce the extra heat. on Venus the life forms give off more heat than they absorb.

on Venus nearly all CO2 exist in the atmosphere causing a strong Greenhouse effect

The canals that late 19th and early 20th century observers thought they saw on Mars turned out to be optical illusions very narrow oceans of water enormous cracks caused by extensive plate tectonics on Mars huge chains of thousands of large volcanoes

optical illusions

What wavelength of the electromagnetic spectrum should I use to examine the surface of a planet which is completely covered by a thick layer of clouds all the time? x-rays visible light radio waves any of the above would work

radio waves

Which of the following is NOT a way we have studied the planet Mars so far? sending a spacecraft into orbit around it landing a spacecraft on the surface and examining the soil in an automated laboratory studying samples of Mars that were blasted off the surface by impacts long ago and later found on Earth sending spacecraft to Mars which have brought samples of the planet back to Earth observing it through telescopes from Earth

sending spacecraft to Mars which have brought samples of the planet back to Earth

Which of the following would NOT be one of the problems faced by an unprotected Earthling stranded on Mars? (Unprotected meaning no space suit.) the lack of any ozone layer shielding the lack of liquid water today on the surface the low atmospheric pressure the composition of the atmosphere the extreme (high) heat at most latitudes

the extreme (high) heat at most latitudes

One way in which Mars closely resembles the Earth is the make-up and thickness of its atmosphere the length of its day its mass the length of its year

the length of its day

The process by which Venus became so much hotter than the Earth is called the runaway greenhouse effect radioactivity tectonic displacement ozone depletion

the runaway greenhouse effect