Astronomy Ch 11
15. Based on the image below, this moon a. is geologically active. b. is possibly geologically active. c. was geologically active in the past but is no longer active. d. is geologically dead. e. More information is needed before any conclusion can be made.
A
20. What makes extremophile organisms different from other life forms? a. They can live in extreme conditions, such as very low or high temperature environments, oxygen-poor environments, or environments with extremely low light levels. b. They live only in environments with extremely high temperatures, such as near volcanic vents. c. They live in environments lacking in organic compounds. d. They live in environments where little to no water is found, such as deserts.
A
22. Which of the following moons is not geologically active? a. Callisto b. Triton c. Europa d. Enceladus e. Io
A
23. The varied colors found on Io's surface are due to the presence of various molecules containing a. sulfur. b. silicon. c. iron. d. mercury. e. magnesium.
A
3. How do regular moons rotate in comparison to their planets? a. in the same direction b. in the opposite direction c. sometimes in the same direction and sometimes in the opposite direction d. Unlike their planets, moons don't rotate at all.
A
30. From where does Titan's thick, nitrogen-rich atmosphere likely arise? a. photodissociation of methane and ammonia in its atmosphere b. emitted by frequent volcanic eruptions c. deposited by ongoing cometary impacts over the age of the Solar System d. photosynthesis of algae in oceans that lie beneath its icy surface e. released from underground reservoirs from early impacts.
A
32. Which of the following moons do scientists believe most closely represents the primordial Earth, although at a much lower temperature? a. Titan b. Europa c. Callisto d. Io e. Ganymede
A
33. Which of the following moons is geologically dead? a. Callisto b. Io c. Europa d. Enceladus e. Titan
A
39. How do astronomers take such detailed, close-up pictures of ring systems? a. They send satellites to the outer planets to take pictures for us. b. They take them using backyard telescopes, just like Galileo did. c. They take them using the largest optical telescopes on Earth. d. They have astronauts in space take pictures of them. e. They wait until the planet is closest to Earth and use the Hubble Space Telescope.
A
41. Which giant planets have rings? a. All of them b. Only Jupiter and Saturn c. Only Saturn d. None of them
A
53. Of what are Saturn's rings primarily made? a. water ice b. methane c. nitrogen d. dark organic material e. dark silicate material
A
55. Ring particles range in size from tiny grains to a. house-sized boulders. b. basketball-sized boulders. c. city-sized chunks. d. tennis ball-sized rocks. e. fingernail-sized pebbles.
A
58. Why are some of Saturn's rings diffuse? a. Unlike other things, the particles in diffuse rings collide infrequently, allowing them to maintain highly elliptical and/or inclined orbits and spread out b. The particles in diffuse rings are especially small compared to other rings, causing them to look less well defined c. The diffuse rings are made of tiny particles of methane, while the particles in other rings are made primarily of water ice d. The diffuse rings are comprised of charged particles, which spread out due to the magnetic forces from Saturn's magnetic field
A
59. Jupiter's rings are made of material from a. its innermost moons. b. its upper atmosphere. c. its outermost moons. d. only Io. e. only its retrograde moons.
A
64. What is the most likely reason that a planet's rings would reflect more than 50 percent of the sunlight they receive? a. They are made of ice. b. They are made of silicate rock. c. They are made of liquid. d. They are made of iron. e. They are very old.
A
68. Rings of giant planets are very thin compared to their diameters mainly because a. of collisions between ring particles. b. moons that tidally disrupt have small diameters. c. energy is conserved when a moon tidally disrupts. d. the planets have large tidal forces. e. shepherd moons force them to be extremely thin.
A
10. Why do the giant planets have the largest share of moons in the solar system? a. There was more rocky material present at their orbital positions, so they collected more moons b. Being the most massive planets in the solar system, they were able to gather more material to form moons than the terrestrial planets c. The temperature of the solar nebula at other locations in the solar system was too high for moons to form around the terrestrial planets d. Since they rotate faster than the terrestrial planets, the giant planets were able to 'spin off' clumps of material which formed moons
B
14. Based on the image below, this moon a. is geologically active. b. is possibly geologically active. c. was geologically active in the past but is not longer active. d. is geologically dead. e. More information is needed before any conclusion can be made.
B
2. How many moons are known in the Solar System? a. Less than 50 b. At least 150 c. Around 10 d. Many thousands
B
25. Based on the image below, this moon a. is geologically active. b. is possibly geologically active. c. was geologically active in the past but is no longer active. d. is geologically dead.
B
26. Which of the following moons is thought to have a vast ocean of water beneath its frozen surface? a. Triton b. Europa c. Ganymede d. Io e. Callisto
B
27. What leads astronomers to believe that some large moons associated with the giant planets have compositions that are roughly half water? a. Spectroscopic analysis indicates the presence of large bodies of water. b. They have average densities midway between water and rock. c. Space probes have drilled into the surfaces of many of the moons and detected water. d. Rocks and other features that form only in the presence of water have been observed. e. Astronomers have observed the gravitational effects of tides on those moons.
B
34. How do particles from the moon Enceladus wind up in Saturn's E ring? a. Volcanoes erupt and expel silicates into space. b. Water geysers erupt from the surface and expel them into space. c. Cosmic rays bombard the surface rock on Enceladus and expel them into space. d. A collision with a co-orbiting moon knocked rocky debris into orbit around Saturn. e. Strong winds from Saturn blow material off of Enceladus's surface.
B
37. Two years after first being observed, astronomers reported that Saturn's rings vanished. What happened to them? a. The old ring system dissipated, and since then a new one has formed. b. The orbital plane of the rings was seen edge-on, and the rings were too thin to be visible. c. Most telescopes used hundreds of years ago couldn't adequately resolve the ring system. d. Astronomers were looking at the wrong planet, leading to the chance discovery of Uranus. e. They were hidden behind some of Saturn's many moons.
B
51. If you wanted to search for faint rings around a giant planet by sending a spacecraft on a flyby, it would be best to make your observations a. as the spacecraft approached the planet. b. after the spacecraft passed the planet. c. while orbiting the planet. d. during the closest flyby. e. while orbiting one of its moons.
B
54. The mass of all of Saturn's bright rings is comparable to the mass of a. a small comet. b. a small icy moon. c. Earth's Moon. d. Mars. e. Venus.
B
57. All of the following ring structures are known to be created by shepherd moons except a. braided rings. b. spokes. c. scalloped edges. d. ring gaps. e. knots and kinks.
B
6. Most large regular moons probably formed a. when passing asteroids were captured by the gravitational field of their planet. b. at the same time as their planets and grew by accretion. c. after a collision between a planet and a large asteroid fractured off a piece of the planet. d. after the period of heavy bombardment in the early Solar System. e. after a planet got kicked out of its orbit and was gravitationally captured by another planet.
B
61. If the Moon had active volcanoes, a. the Moon would have a thick hydrogen atmosphere. b. Earth might have a ring. c. the Moon's surface would have more craters than it currently does. d. life could not exist on Earth. e. the Moon would have different phases than we see today.
B
62. What observational setup is required to observe backlit rings? a. The light source doing the backlighting has to have wavelengths much longer than the size of the ring particles. b. The light source doing the backlighting has to have wavelengths comparable to the size of the ring particles. c. The light source doing the backlighting has to have wavelengths much shorter than the size of the ring particles. d. The light source doing the backlighting must be a blackbody source peaking in the visible part of the spectrum.
B
65. Saturn's rings are much brighter than the rings of the other giant planets because a. Saturn is closer to the Sun and receives a higher flux of sunlight. b. the material in Saturn's rings is made mostly of ice rather than rock. c. Saturn's rings have over 100 times more material in them. d. Saturn's rings are tilted by a larger angle relative to our line of sight. e. the material in Saturn's rings is much hotter than material in other ring systems.
B
66. Particles that make up the rings of Uranus and Neptune are composed of a. rocky material from tidally disrupted moons. b. organic material that has darkened because of bombardment by high-energy, charged particles. c. icy material from tidally disrupted comets. d. magma from volcanic eruptions on the surfaces of their moons. e. all of the above
B
8. Assume that we discover a new moon of Jupiter. It orbits Jupiter at a large distance and in the opposite direction that Jupiter rotates. It is much smaller than most of Jupiter's other moons and has a density close to that of Earth rocks. Therefore, this moon is most likely a. a regular moon that formed with Jupiter in the early Solar System. b. an irregular moon that is most likely a captured asteroid. c. an irregular moon that is most likely a captured comet. d. an irregular moon that is most likely a protoplanet that collided with Jupiter in the early Solar System and then was caught in orbit by Jupiter's gravity. e. More information is needed before any conclusion can be made.
B
1. Who first discovered moons around a planet in our Solar System other than Earth? a. Newton b. Kepler c. Galileo d. Huygens e. Einstein
C
17. How does the geological activity on Io compare to the activity on other moons? a. It is almost completely inactive. b. It occurs at widely spaced intervals but is highly active when it does occur. c. It is very active on a regular basis. d. It used to be inactive but has slowly increased activity over the past few million years.
C
19. What does a darkened surface indicate on a rocky moon compared to one with a lighter surface? a. It indicates the presence of cooling lava from volcanic eruptions. b. It indicates that the surface of the darkened moon is younger than the lighter moon. c. It indicates that the surface of the darkened moon is younger than the lighter moon. d. It indicates an elevated level of organic compounds on the surface.
C
36. What is the escape velocity from Europa, whose radius is 1,600 km and mass is 5 × 1022 kg? a. 27 km/s b. 7.0 km/s c. 2.0 km/s d. 15 km/s
C
44. Which of the following planets has the most complex and conspicuous ring system? a. Mars b. Jupiter c. Saturn d. Uranus e. Neptune
C
46. Of what are Saturn's brightest rings primarily made? a. a thin, solid surface of rock and ice b. an orbiting cloud of high-density gas c. hundreds to thousands of smaller ringlets d. a very diffuse collection of dust e. house-sized rocks
C
47. Saturn's rings disappear from sight every a. 40 years. b. 25 years. c. 15 years. d. 8 years. e. 6 months.
C
49. Saturn's G ring, as shown in the image below, is known as a. a ringlet. b. an arclet. c. a diffuse ring. d. a spoke. e. a crepe ring.
C
60. How do Uranus's rings differ from the ring systems of the other giant planets? a. Uranus has only one ring made up of fine dust. b. Uranus has the most spectacular ring system with many bright, wide rings. c. Uranus has 13 rings that are narrow and widely spaced. d. Uranus has rings that are clumped into several arclike segments. e. Uranus has rings that are solid enough to land on.
C
67. Rings that look like they are intertwined (but are not) are caused by a. new laws of physics. b. ring material on highly elliptical orbits. c. the gravitational influence of small moons. d. electromagnetic interaction of the rings with Saturn's magnetic field. e. meteoroid impacts.
C
7. Which property of a moon might lead you to believe it was a captured asteroid? a. It is tidally locked. b. Its orbital axis is tilted by 5 degrees compared to the planet's rotational axis. c. It rotates in the opposite direction than its planet rotates. d. Its surface is very smooth and lacks craters. e. It is roughly the size of Earth's moon.
C
11. Why are some moons such as Io and Enceladus geologically active even though they are small in size compared to the planets? a. Unlike some planets, these moons have additional supplies of radioactive elements providing the necessary heating to drive geological activity b. The interiors of these moons contain a larger supply of heavy elements such as iron than found in terrestrial planets, which contributes to greater heating and high geological activity c. Tidal forces from the Sun are especially large for these moons, leading to greater interior heating and more geological activity d. The interiors of these moons are heated by the rapidly changing direction and strength of tidal forces from Jupiter, resulting in geological activity
D
13. Based on the image below, this moon a. is geologically active. b. is possibly geologically active. c. was geologically active in the past but is no longer active. d. is geologically dead.
D
18. What sort of liquids do astronomers believe exist on Saturn's moon, Titan? a. Lakes of liquid nitrogen, N2 b. Lakes of normal water, H2O c. Lakes of ammonia and hydrogen sulfide d. Lakes of methane, ethane, and other hydrocarbons
D
21. Io has the most volcanic activity in the Solar System because a. it is continually being bombarded with material in Saturn's E ring. b. it is one of the largest moons and its interior is heated by radioactive decays. c. of gravitational friction caused by the moon Enceladus. d. its interior is tidally heated as it orbits around Jupiter. e. the ice on the surface creates a large pressure on the water below.
D
24. Cryovolcanism occurs when a. molten lava freezes when it reaches the surface because of extremely low temperatures. b. volcanoes erupt underwater. c. an icy moon has volcanoes emitting molten lava from deep underground. d. low-temperature liquids explode through the surface because of increasing pressure underground. e. a comet hits an object and causes volcanic eruptions.
D
29. Titan's thick atmosphere is believed to have been created when ultraviolet photons broke apart methane molecules, ultimately creating the observed smoglike conditions. However, this process would likely remove all of the atmospheric methane in roughly 10 million years, yet we still see its presence today. What is the most likely cause? a. Cometary impacts periodically bring new methane to Titan. b. Ethane rains down out of the atmosphere, combines with surface rocks, and creates new methane. c. Infrared photons give atmospheric molecules enough energy to recombine into methane. d. Volcanoes on Titan periodically release new methane into the atmosphere. e. Bacteria on Titan constantly replenish the methane in the atmosphere.
D
35. Which moon gives rise to the particles that make up Saturn's E ring? a. Titan b. Triton c. Callisto d. Enceladus e. Thethys
D
38. The density of particles in a planet's rings can be measured using a. infrared light. b. the Doppler shift. c. shadows cast by nearby moons. d. light from background stars. e. their proper motions.
D
4. The only planet(s) without a moon is (are) a. Mercury. b. Venus. c. Mars. d. Mercury and Venus. e. Mercury, Venus, and Mars.
D
40. What did Galileo deduce from his observations of Saturn's rings? a. The rings are very thin. b. The rings are made of reflective water ice. c. The rings vary in size and shape. d. There are objects orbiting very close to Saturn.
D
42. What influence do pairs of shepherd moons have on the giant planets' rings? a. They keep the rings systems completely stable forever. b. They only allow the rocky ring systems to remain stable while destabilizing the icy ring systems. c. They cause the rings to eventually fall into Saturn by gravitational tugs on the ring particles. d. They keep rings between the pair narrow by gravitational tugs on the ring particles.
D
45. Astronomers originally planned to have the Pioneer 11 space probe pass through the Cassini Gap in Saturn's rings. Would this mission have been successful? a. Yes, but they decided that it was more important to observe Saturn's moons. b. Yes, but they decided to land on the rings instead. c. No, because the Cassini Gap turns out to be too narrow. d. No, because the Cassini Gap is not completely empty. e. No, because the same gravitational influences that create the Cassini Gap would have destroyed the probe.
D
5. Which of the following is not a characteristic of regular moons? a. They revolve around their planets in the same direction as the planets rotate. b. They have orbits that lie nearly in the planets' equatorial plane. c. They are usually tidally locked to their parent planets. d. They are much smaller than all of the known planets. e. They formed in an accretion disk around their parent planet.
D
52. Which of the following is not a way to renew particles in a ring system? a. shredding an object that came within a planet's Roche limit b. a collision between moons or other objects near the ring system c. eruptions on a nearby moon, sending particles into space d. a planet's gravity drawing particles from the nearby interstellar medium e. impacts on a nearby moon, sending particles into space
D
56. Ring material a. is made primarily of fine dust. b. has always orbited the giant planets. c. reflects more than 75 percent of the light that falls on it. d. must constantly be renewed. e. is made primarily of kilometer-sized rocks.
D
70. Through what process do some living organisms find energy to survive deep under the ocean? a. electrolysis b. photosynthesis c. plasmosynthesis d. chemosynthesis e. magnetosynthesis
D
9. If a moon has a retrograde orbit, then it a. orbits in the opposite direction than its planet rotates. b. orbits in the opposite direction than its planet revolves around the Sun. c. orbits in a clockwise direction as viewed from the planet's north pole. d. both a and c e. all of the above
D
12. Which of the following can be used as an indicator of the age of a moon's surface? a. color of the surface b. crater density c. volcanic activity d. radioactive dating e. all of the above
E
16. Which object has been turned inside out numerous times, leading to a situation where lighter elements have escaped, sulfur compounds compose the crust, and primarily heavier elements make up its core? a. Mercury b. Titan c. Callisto d. Pluto e. Io
E
28. Titan is a high-priority candidate for the search for life outside Earth primarily because it has a. liquid water. b. a dense atmosphere like Earth's. c. warm temperatures. d. active volcanoes. e. organic material.
E
31. On which of Saturn's moons did the Cassini-Huygens Probe land in 2004? a. Callisto b. Io c. Europa d. Enceladus e. Titan
E
43. Which of the giant planets does not have rings? a. Jupiter b. Saturn c. Uranus d. Neptune e. None: all of the giant planets have rings.
E
48. How does the thickness of Saturn's bright ring system compare to its diameter? a. It's about 10 times thinner. b. It's about 1,000 times thinner. c. It's about 10,000 times thinner. d. It's about 100,000 times thinner. e. It's about 10 million times thinner.
E
50. If a planetary ring had an inner diameter of 100,000 km, an outer diameter of 120,000 km, a thickness of 10 m, and a density of 100 kg/m3, what would be the total mass of material in this ring? a. 6 × 1020 kg b. 5 × 1023 kg c. 4 × 1015 kg d. 2 × 1021 kg e. 3 × 1018 kg.
E
63. Which of the following is false? a. The sizes of planetary ring material ranges from tiny grains to house-sized boulders. b. Some rings around giant planets are made from particles that are ejected by its moons. c. Planetary rings can be made when a moon is torn apart by tidal forces. d. The material in planetary rings orbit the planet while obeying Kepler's third law. e. Planetary rings around the giant planets usually remain for tens of billions of years.
E
69. Extremophiles on Earth have been found a. in the scalding waters of Yellowstone's hot springs. b. in the bone-dry oxidizing environment of Chile's Atacama Desert. c. in the Dead Sea. d. in the deep subsurface ice of the Antarctic ice sheet. e. all of the above
E
