MULTIPLE
CHOICE. Choose the one alternative that
best completes the statement or answers the question.
1) When an electron in an atom goes from a higher
energy state to a lower energy state, the atom
A) emits a photon
of a specific frequency.
B) absorbs a
photon of a specific frequency.
C) absorbs several
photons of a specific frequency.
D) can emit a
photon of any frequency.
E) can absorb a
photon of any frequency.
2) Which of the following does not have a
major effect in shaping planetary surfaces?
A) impact
cratering
B) volcanism
C) tectonics
D) erosion
E) magnetism
3) What mechanism is most responsible for
generating the internal heat of Io that drives the volcanic activity?
A) accretion
B) radioactive
decay
C) differentiation
D) tidal heating
E) bombardment
4) What is the purpose of adaptive optics?
A) to improve the
angular resolution of telescopes in space
B) to eliminate
the distorting effects of atmospheric turbulence for telescopes on the ground
C) to increase the
collecting area of telescopes on the ground
D) to increase the
magnification of telescopes on the ground
E) to allow
several small telescopes to work together like a single larger telescope
5) Which of the following is not
characteristic of the jovian planets?
A) larger size and
radius than terrestrial planets
B) farther from
the Sun than terrestrial planets
C) higher density
than terrestrial planets
D) no solid
surface
E) spaced farther
apart than terrestrial planets
6) Where are most of the known asteroids found?
A) between the
orbits of Mars and Jupiter
B) in the Kuiper
belt
C) in the Oort
cloud
D) between the
orbits of the jovian planets
E) between the
orbits of the terrestrial planets
7) What is the Io torus?
A) the atmosphere
of Io that consists of gases expelled by the volcanically active moon
B) a donut-shaped
belt around Jupiter that consists of ionized gases, expelled by the
volcanically active moon Io, captured by Jupiter's magnetic field
C) a large,
donut-shaped volcano on the surface of Io
D) a donut-shaped
belt around Jupiter that consists of charged particles captured from the solar
wind by Jupiter's magnetic field
E) a planned NASA
mission to Io
8) The age of our solar system is approximately
A) 10,000 years.
B) 3.8 million
years.
C) 4.6 million
years.
D) 4.6 billion
years.
E) 10-20 billion
years.
9) Which of the following is not
characteristic of the terrestrial planets?
A) smaller size
and radius than jovian planets
B) more moons than
jovian planets
C) higher density
than jovian planets
D) solid surface
E) more closely
spaced together than jovian planets
10) Heat escapes from the planet's surface into
space by thermal radiation. Planets radiate almost entirely in the wavelength
range of the
A) infrared.
B) radio.
C) visible.
D) ultraviolet.
E) none of the
above
11) Spacecraft have landed on all the terrestrial
worlds except
A) Mercury. B)
Venus. C) Moon. D) Mars.
12) How did the lunar maria form?
A) Large impacts
fractured the Moon's lithosphere, allowing lava to fill the impact basins.
B) The early
bombardment created heat that melted the lunar surface in the regions of the
maria.
C) Volatiles
escaping from the Moon's interior heated and eroded the surface in the regions
of the maria.
D) The giant
impact that created the Moon left smooth areas that we call the maria.
E) The maria are
the result of gradual erosion by micrometeorites striking the Moon.
13) The terrestrial planet cores contain mostly
metal because
A) the entire
planets are made mostly of metal.
B) metals
condensed first in the solar nebula and the rocks then accreted around them.
C) metals sank to
the center during a time when the interiors were molten throughout.
D) radioactivity
created metals in the core from the decay of uranium.
E) convection
carried the metals to the core.
14) Planetary rings are
A) nearer to their
planet than any of the planet's large moons.
B) orbiting in the
equatorial plane of their planet.
C) composed of a
large number of individual particles that orbit their planet in accord with
Kepler's third law.
D) known to exist
for all of the jovian planets.
E) all of the
above.
15) Which of the following worlds has the most
substantial atmosphere?
A) Mercury B)
Venus C) the Moon D) Mars E) Earth
16) Which of the following describes volcanism?
A) the excavation
of bowl-shaped depressions by asteroids or comets striking a planet's surface
B) the eruption of
molten rock from a planet's interior to its surface
C) the disruption
of a planet's surface by internal stresses
D) the wearing
down or building up of geological features by wind, water, ice, and other
phenomena of planetary weather
17) Which of the following is not an
advantage of the Hubble Space Telescope over ground-based telescopes?
A) It is closer to
the stars.
B) Stars do not
twinkle when observed from space.
C) It can observe
infrared and ultraviolet light, as well as visible light.
D) It never has to
close because of bad weather.
E) Observers on
the ground can use it at any time of day (i.e., not only during their night).
18) The lithosphere of a planet is the
layer that consists of
A) material above
the crust.
B) material
between the crust and the mantle.
C) the rigid rocky
material of the crust and uppermost portion of the mantle.
D) the softer
rocky material of the mantle.
E) the lava that
comes out of volcanoes.
19) When white light passes through a cool cloud
of gas, we see
A) visible light.
B) infrared light.
C) thermal
radiation.
D) an absorption
line spectrum.
E) an emission
line spectrum.
20) The atmospheric pressure on the surface of a
planet depends primarily on
A) the surface
temperature.
B) the weight of
the atmosphere above the surface.
C) the surface
gravity of the planet.
D) the fraction of
greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
E) the amount of
sunlight absorbed in the atmosphere.
21) What do astronomers mean by light pollution?
A) Light pollution
refers to pollution caused by light industry as opposed to heavy industry.
B) Light pollution
refers to harmful gases emitted by common street lights.
C) Light pollution
refers to light used for human activities that brightens the sky and hinders
astronomical observations.
D) Light pollution
refers to the lights that must be used inside major observatories and that make
it difficult for astronomers' eyes to adapt to darkness.
E) Light pollution
is another name for sunlight, which makes it impossible to see stars in the
daytime.
22) Olympus Mons is a
A) shield volcano
on Mars.
B) stratovolcano
on Mercury.
C) large lava
plain on the Moon.
D) shield volcano
on Venus.
E) stratovolcano
on the Moon.
23) Everything looks red through a red filter
because
A) the filter
emits red light and absorbs other colors.
B) the filter
absorbs red light and emits other colors.
C) the filter transmits
red light and absorbs other colors.
D) the filter
reflects red light and transmits other colors.
24) According to the nebular theory, what are
asteroids and comets?
A) They are the
shattered remains of collisions between planets.
B) They are the
shattered remains of collisions between moons.
C) They are
leftover planetesimals that never accreted into planets.
D) They are chunks
of rock or ice that condensed long after the planets and moons had formed.
E) They are chunks
of rock or ice that were expelled from planets by volcanoes.
25) How does the greenhouse effect work?
A) Greenhouse
gases transmit visible light, allowing it to heat the surface, but then absorb
infrared light from the Earth, trapping the heat near the surface.
B) The higher
pressure of the thick atmosphere at lower altitudes traps heat in more
effectively.
C) Ozone transmits
visible light, allowing it to heat the surface, but then absorbs most of the
infrared heat, trapping the heat near the surface.
D) Greenhouse
gases absorb X rays and ultraviolet light from the Sun, which then heat the
atmosphere and the surface.
E) Greenhouse
gases absorb infrared light from the Sun, which then heats the atmosphere and
the surface.
26) Under what circumstances can differentiation
occur in a planet?
A) The planet must
have a rocky surface.
B) The planet must
be made of both metal and rock.
C) The planet must
have an atmosphere.
D) The planet must
be geologically active, that is, have volcanoes, planetquakes, and erosion from
weather.
E) The planet must
have a molten interior.
27) The wavelength of a wave is
A) how strong the
wave is.
B) the distance
between a peak of the wave and the next trough.
C) the distance
between two adjacent peaks of the wave.
D) the distance
between where the wave is emitted and where it is absorbed.
E) equal to the
speed of the wave times the wave's frequency.
28) We can rule out the idea that the Earth and
Moon formed simultaneously in the solar nebula because
A) they have
different rotation rates.
B) they have
different densities.
C) they have
different sizes.
D) they have
different surfaces.
E) the Moon is
made of metal and the Earth is made of rock.
29) Which of the following describes tectonics?
A) the excavation
of bowl-shaped depressions by asteroids or comets striking a planet's surface
B) the eruption of
molten rock from a planet's interior to its surface
C) the disruption
of a planet's surface by internal stresses
D) the wearing
down or building up of geological features by wind, water, ice, and other
phenomena of planetary weather
30) According to our theory of solar system
formation, why do all the planets orbit the Sun in the same direction and in
nearly the same plane?
A) The original
solar nebula happened to be disk-shaped
by chance.
B) Any planets
that once orbited in the opposite direction or a different plane were ejected
from the solar system.
C) The laws of
conservation of energy and conservation of angular momentum ensure that any rotating,
collapsing cloud will end up as a spinning disk.
D) The Sun formed
first, and as it grew in size it spread into a disk, rather like the way a ball
of dough can be flattened into a pizza by spinning it.
E) Luck explains
it, as we would expect that most other solar systems would not have all their
planets orbiting in such a pattern.
31) Which of the following wavelength regions
cannot be studied with telescopes on the ground?
A) radio waves
B) ultraviolet
C) X rays
D) both B and C
E) both A and C
32) Valles Marineris is a(n)
A) large valley on
the Moon.
B) extensive plain
on Mars.
C) huge series of
cliffs on Mercury.
D) large canyon on
Mars.
E) large canyon on
Venus.
33) An icy leftover planetesimal orbiting the Sun
is
A) a comet.
B) a meteor.
C) an asteroid.
D) a meteorite.
E) possibly any of
the above.
34) Which of the following worlds have the
thinnest lithospheres?
A) Earth and the
Moon
B) Venus and the
Moon
C) Mercury and
Venus
D) Earth and Mars
E) Earth and Venus
35) How have we been able to construct detailed
maps of surface features on Venus?
A) by studying
Venus from Earth with powerful telescopes
B) by studying
Venus with powerful telescopes on spacecraft that were sent to orbit Venus
C) by making
computer models of geological processes on Venus
D) by using radar
from spacecraft that were sent to orbit Venus
E) by landing
spacecraft on the surface for close-up study
36) Which of the terrestrial worlds has the
strongest magnetic field?
A) Mars B) Earth C) the Moon D) Venus E) Mercury
37) The belts and zones of Jupiter
are
A) alternating
bands of rising and falling air at different latitudes.
B) cyclonic and
anticyclonic storms.
C) names for
different cloud layers on Jupiter.
D) alternating
regions of charged particles in Jupiter's magnetic field.
38) If one object has a large redshift and another
object has a small redshift, what can we conclude about these two objects?
A) The one with
the large redshift is moving toward us faster than the one with the small
redshift.
B) The one with
the large redshift is moving away from us, and the one with the small redshift
is moving toward us.
C) The one with
the large redshift is moving away from us faster than the one with the small redshift.
D) The one with
the large redshift is hotter and therefore is putting out more radiation.
39) The spectra of most galaxies show redshifts.
This means that their spectral lines
A) always are in
the red part of the visible spectrum.
B) have wavelengths
that are longer than normal.
C) have
wavelengths that are shorter than normal.
D) have a higher
intensity in the red part of the spectrum.
E) have normal
wavelengths, but absorption of light makes them appear red.
40) How do asteroids differ from comets?
A) Asteroids are
rocky bodies and are denser than the comets, which are made of icy material.
B) Asteroids are
rocky bodies and are less dense than the comets, which are made of icy
material.
C) Asteroids are
made of icy material and are denser than the comets, which are more rocky.
D) Asteroids are
made of icy material and are less dense than the comets, which are rockier.
E) Asteroids and
comets are both made of rocky and icy material, but asteroids are smaller in
size than comets.
41) Most of the planets discovered around other
stars
A) are more
massive than Earth and orbit very far from the star.
B) are more
massive than Earth and orbit very close to the star.
C) are less
massive than Earth and orbit very far from the star.
D) are less
massive than Earth and orbit very close to the star.
E) are found
around neutron stars.
42) The core, mantle, and crust
of a planet are defined by differences in their
A) geological
activity. B) temperature.
C) strength. D)
composition.
43) From lowest energy to highest energy, which of
the following correctly orders the different categories of electromagnetic
radiation?
A) infrared,
visible light, ultraviolet, X rays, gamma rays, radio
B) radio,
infrared, visible light, ultraviolet, X rays, gamma rays
C) visible light,
infrared, X rays, ultraviolet, gamma rays, radio
D) gamma rays, X
rays, visible light, ultraviolet, infrared, radio
E) radio, X rays,
visible light, ultraviolet, infrared, gamma rays
44) Why do astronomers believe Triton may have
been a planet that was captured by Neptune?
A) It orbits
Neptune in the opposite direction of Neptune's rotation.
B) It is too large
to have been formed in the jovian nebula that formed Neptune.
C) It has an
atmosphere and a measurable greenhouse effect.
D) It undergoes
seasonal changes.
E) It is colder
than any other moon or planet.
45) The polar caps on Mars are composed of
A) pure solid
carbon dioxide.
B) pure water ice.
C) mostly solid
carbon dioxide and some water ice.
D) mostly water
ice and some solid carbon dioxide.
E) There are no
polar caps on Mars.
46) If you have a 100-watt light bulb, how much energy does it use
each minute?
A) 6,000 joules
B) 6,000 watts
C) 600 joules
D) 600 watts
E) 100 joules
47) If you heat a gas so that collisions are
continually bumping electrons to higher energy levels, when the electrons fall
back to lower energy levels the gas produces
A) thermal
radiation.
B) an absorption
line spectrum.
C) an emission
line spectrum.
D) X rays.
E) radio waves.
48) Which of the following describes impact
cratering?
A) the excavation
of bowl-shaped depressions by asteroids or comets striking a planet's surface
B) the eruption of
molten rock from a planet's interior to its surface
C) the disruption
of a planet's surface by internal stresses
D) the wearing
down or building up of geological features by wind, water, ice, and other
phenomena of planetary weather
49) What is differentiation in planetary
geology?
A) the process by
which gravity separates materials according to density
B) the process by
which different types of minerals form a conglomerate rock
C) any process by
which a planet's surface evolves differently from another planet's surface
D) any process by
which one part of a planet's surface evolves differently from another part of
the same planet's surface
E) any process by
which a planet evolves differently from its moons
50) You observe a distant galaxy. You find that a
spectral line normally found in the visible part of the spectrum is shifted
toward the infrared. What do you conclude?
A) The galaxy is
moving away from you.
B) The galaxy is
moving toward you.
C) The galaxy has
very weak gravity.
D) The galaxy is
made purely of hydrogen.
E) The composition
of the galaxy is changing.
1) Answer: A
2) Answer: E
3) Answer: D
4) Answer: B
5) Answer: C
6) Answer: A
7) Answer: B
8) Answer: D
9) Answer: B
10) Answer: A
11) Answer: A
12) Answer: A
13) Answer: C
14) Answer: E
15) Answer: B
16) Answer: B
17) Answer: A
18) Answer: C
19) Answer: D
20) Answer: B
21) Answer: C
22) Answer: A
23) Answer: C
24) Answer: C
25) Answer: A
26) Answer: E
27) Answer: C
28) Answer: B
29) Answer: C
30) Answer: C
31) Answer: D
32) Answer: D
33) Answer: A
34) Answer: E
35) Answer: D
36) Answer: B
37) Answer: A
38) Answer: C
39) Answer: B
40) Answer: A
41) Answer: B
42) Answer: D
43) Answer: B
44) Answer: A
45) Answer: C
46) Answer: A
47) Answer: C
48) Answer: A
49) Answer: A
50) Answer: A