Homework 4: Formation of the Solar System

Correctly complete the statements about the rotational characteristics observed for the planets and moons in our Solar System. The same label may be used more than once.

Compared to the direction the sun rotates, Earth rotates in... Same direction compared to the direction the sun rotates, Jupiter rotates in... same direction Compared to the direction the sun rotates, most of the planets rotate in.... same direction compared to the rotation of their parent planet, most moons revolve about their planets in... same direction

Determine whether the following descriptions are part of the definition of a planet in our Solar System.

Definition of a planet: must be in orbit around the sun has attained hydrostatic equilibrium has cleared the neighborhood around its orbit

Select the correct mechanism responsible for the formation of the Oort cloud and the Kuiper belt.

the ejection of planetesimals due to their gravitational interaction with giant planets

Consider a hypothetical object in our Solar System with the properties described: It is in orbit around the Sun and it is round because its mass is large. It does not have an atmosphere and it has not cleared the neighborhood of its orbit. Is this hypothetical object a planet?

this is not a planet

Identify the primary roles of dust in the formation of the early Solar System.

acting as nuclei on which other particles attached cooling warm material by radiating its heat away

What physical principle is responsible for these features?

conservation of angular momentum

Arrange the Solar System objects from least massive to most massive.

1. Asteroid Vesta 2. Mercury 3. mars 4. Venus 5. Neptune 6.saturn 7. sun

The most widely studied members of our Solar System are the eight planets. One fundamental property that drives differences and similarities between the planets is the distance of the planet from the Sun. Rank the eight planets by their orbital distances from the Sun.

1. Mercury 2. Venus 3. Earth 4. Mars 5. Jupiter 6. Saturn 7. Uranus 8. Neptune

Why are the terrestrial planets rocky and the jovian planets gaseous?

Jovian planets formed where it is cold enough for compounds of light elements to form.

The table gives the properties of various hypothetical protoplanets that might have been found in the early Solar System's disk. Use this information to answer the question. If the protoplanets maintain their locations from the Sun, then which one is most likely to become a jovian planet?

Phoenix

How many of these types of objects are located in the Solar System? Each number option may be used more than once.

Planets - eight. Dwarf planets - hundreds. Moons - hundreds. Quasar- zero Jovian planets- four comets- hundreds of thousands Stars-one

Classify each event that occurs during the formation of a single star according to whether it is the result of the star's original gas cloud having some amount of spin. You are currently in a sorting module. Turn off browse mode or quick nav, Tab to items, Space or Enter to pick up, Tab to move, Space or Enter to drop.

Result from rotating gas cloud: formation of disk around stars rapidly rotating stars orbit of planets around the stars formation of polar jets Do not result from rotating gas cloud: Globular cluster formation gravitational heating

Determine which statements support or do not support the current theory of Solar System formation. You are currently in a sorting module. Turn off browse mode or quick nav, Tab to items, Space or Enter to pick up, Tab to move, Space or Enter to drop.

Support theory of Solar System formation: The planets in our solar system lie nearly in the plan of the earlier protoplanetary disc. Many moons rotate in the same direction as their planets. Flattening dust clouds exist around young stars. Planets near the sun have little hydrogen and the ones farther away are mostly hydrogen. Do not support theory of Solar System formation: Some exoplanets have random orbits. The sun uses nuclear fusion to produce heat.

During the formation of the Solar System, frequent collisions between planetesimals and protoplanets played an important part in the evolution of the planets. Which statement does not describe a probable result of collisions in the early Solar System?

Uranus gained its ice‑rich composition