Dr. Charles Merguerian Hofstra University
Astrogeology 03 Practice Exam 03
Sample Exam Questions for Exam #3
I. True/False
01. _____ Jupiter's giant red spot is actually a centuries-old storm in the cloud layers.
02. _____ It is now known that Jupiter has nine large moons in orbit.
03. _____ By all estimates it appears that Jupiter is composed of methane and carbon dioxide.
04. _____ The rotation of Jupiter and Saturn cause equatorial flattening and a polar bulge.
05. _____ All of the four Jovian planets are now known to have rings.
06. _____ Radio emissions from Jupiter are due to a coupling effect of electrons flowing from the planet to Callisto.
07. _____ Amalthea is a small moon farthest from Jupiter's cloud tops.
08. _____ Cratering is an important feature observed on the surface of Io.
09. _____ Ganymede and Callisto are very similar in density and size.
10. ____ It was Huygens who first observed the flat rings of Saturn in 1656.
11. ____ In the Saturnian system, no more than 22 satellites are recognized.
12. ____ Venus and Uranus rotate in retrograde motion and therefore display phases when viewed from Earth.
13. ____ The rings of Saturn rotate such that the linear velocity of the inner rings exceeds that of the outer rings.
14. ____ Planetary atmospheres are commonly studied to arrive at conclusions concerning the degree of geologic activity of a planet.
15. ____ The "spokes" in the D-ring of Saturn are composed of fine-particles that are levitated out of the ring plane by resonance due to co-orbital satellites found in the D-ring.
16. ____ Uranus and Neptune together have eight moons.
17. ____ The green color of Uranus is due to the presence of ammonia (NH3) in the cloudtops.
18. ____ Neptune has only two moons which both orbit in regular elliptical paths.
19. ____ It has been suggested that Pluto was once a moon of Uranus before the near-miss of a renegade asteroid.
20. ____ Many geomorphic features on Io are interpreted to be of volcanic origin.
21. ____ There are other planets and moons in our solar system exist with environments suitable for human migrations from Earth if necessary.
22. ____ The approximate shape of the solar system is a sphere.
23. ____ Uranus and Neptune have a similar size, mass and rotation.
24. ____ Similar to Jupiter and Saturn, a metallic hydrogen core occurs in Neptune.
25. ____ The magnetic fields of Neptune and Uranus are aligned with the rotation axis.
26. ____ Triton is the largest moon in the Neptunbe system.
27. ____ Miranda is a moon of Neptune that seems to be bits and pieces of other moons.
28. ____ Triton is a large moon of Neptune that rotates in the same direction as the planet.
29. ____ Geyser-like eruptions and a thin atmosphere have been detected on Neptune’s moon Nereid.
30. ____ Ice lakes are now known to occur on Europa, Triton, and the Earth.
31. ____ The Pioneer 11, Voyager, and Cassini missions investigated the Saturnian system.
32. ____ We have made landings on the Moon, Venus, Mars, Titan, and Europa.
33. ____ The Hubble Space Telescope is an important compliment to our planetary space probes.
34. ____ Jupiter and Saturn are similar to the sun in composition except for an excess of helium.
35. ____ One might consider Saturn to be a scaled-down version of Jupiter.
Multiple Choice
01. Issac Newton is famous for:
a. formulation of the heliocentric theory
b. flat gooey cookies
c. determination of the speed of light
d. formulation of the law or gravity
e. first scientist to wear bling
02. Most of the mass of our solar system resides in the:
a. asteroid belt
b. sun
c. earth
d. back row of this classroom
e. Jupiter system
03. The asteroid belt lies between the orbits of:
a. Mars and Jupiter
b. Mars and Earth
c. Earth and Moon
d. Venus ands Mercury
e. Uranus and Pluto
04. The first to make telescopic observations of the Saturn was:
a. Alfred E. Neuman
b. Armstrong
c. Galileo
d. Cassini
e. Marius
05. A characteristic feature of the terrestrial planets, as a whole, is their:
a. uniform surface temperatures
b. similar rotational periods
c. relatively small size and high density
06. The origin of the asteroid belt is believed to be the result of:
a. the explosion of a planet
b. the collision of two planets
c. bits of matter that never accreted to form a planet
07. The outer planets are characterized by:
a. their large size and low density
b. their small size and high density
c. their large size and high density
08. The size of a planet is determined:
a. by its density
b. by its distance from the sun
c. from radar or telescopic measurements
09. The "moons" orbiting Jupiter do not include the following:
a. Titan d. Io
b. Callisto e. b, c, and d only
c. Europa
10. The main element(s)/compound(s) present in Jupiter's clouds:
a. methane d. helium
b. hydrogen e. b. and d. only
c. oxygen
11. Jupiter's rotation
a. is retrograde
b. is faster at its equatorial region than at its poles
c. is expressed by movements of its clouds
d. is expressed by its radio emissions
e. b, c, and d only
12. The so-called "Jovian" planets are characterized by:
a. large size
b. thick atmosphere
c. gaseous/icy compositions
d. orbits outside of Mars
e. all of the above
13. Miranda
a. is a satellite of Uranus
b. displays a dull, cratered surface
c. is crossed by large tectonic valleys
d. is a and c only
e. is none of the above
14. Satellites of Jupiter having mean densities nearly equal to crustal Earth-type rocks are:
a. Europa
b. Ganymede
c. Callisto
d. Io
e. a and d only
15. A planet having a single satellite is:
a. Uranus
b. Neptune
c. Jupiter
d. Pluto
e. Saturn
16. Of the following, the cloudy satellite is:
a. Iapetus
b. Miranda
c. Io
d. Callisto
e. Titan
17. On____________, active volcanism has been witnessed.
a. Titan
b. Io
c. Iapetus
d. Europa
e. Ganymede
18. In 1656, the Dutch astronomer Christian Huygens first observed
a. all of Jupiter's moons
b. the flat ring lying in Saturn's equatorial plane but not touching the planet
c. that Neptune's axis is perpendicular to its orbital plane
d. that Iapetus is two faced
e. all of the above
19. ______ is a satellite of Jupiter having an essentially noncratered, ice-covered surface
a. Io
b. Titan
c. Europa
d. Iapetus
e. Miranda
20. ______ is a satellite of Uranus displaying a great diversity of landforms.
a. Miranda
b. Io
c. Phobos
d. Titan
e. Prometheus
21. The number of Saturn's satellites is closest to:
a. 18
b. 7
c. 11
d. 22
e. 33
22. The number of Jupiter's satellites is:
a. 8
b. 17
c. 16
d. More than 60
e. 23
23. Uranus
a. experiences seasons that are 42 Earth years long
b. displays Hadley circulation cells from pole to pole
c. experiences days that are 42 Earth years long
d. rotates once every 17 (Earth) hours
e. b, c, and d only
24. Neptune is blue in color because
a. of huge water oceans rich in sulfates.
b. mixed rock and ice particles in the atmosphere.
c. of methane ice.
d. reflectance of red wavelengths by clouds.
e. just because.
25. The planet Uranus has an unusual rotation in that:
a. the rotation axis points to the north star, similar to earth.
b. the rotation axis is perpendicular to the ecliptic plane.
c. it barely spins.
d. the rotation axis lies within the ecliptic plane.
e. it is always retrograde as viewed from above the solar system.
26. Planetary rings
a. develop early in the history of a planet.
b. are emphemeral features that eventually spiral into a planet.
c. consist of solar wind.
d. are older than the solar system.
e. contain particles of uniform size.
27. If you lived on the north pole of Uranus, a day would last roughly:
a. 24 hours.
b. 12 hours.
c. a Uranian year.
d. 21 Earth years.
e. as long as you could stay awake.
28. One major difference between Uranus and Neptune is the fact that:
a. Neptune radiates much more internal heat.
b. Uranus has a ring system.
c. only Neptune has a moon.
d. Uranus radiates much more internal heat.
e. Neptune may have been involved in a cataclysmic collision that altered its rotation.
29. The interior and clouds of Uranus and Neptune consist of all of the follwing except:
a. hydrogen.
b. liquid water.
c. methane.
d. propane.
e. ammonia.
30. The near alignment of the rotation axis and magnetic pole is not recognized on:
a. Earth
b. Jupiter
c. Earth’s Moon
d. Uranus
e. Saturn
31. All of the following are moons of Uranus except:
a. Triton
b. Miranda
c. Ariel
d. Umbriel
e. Oberon
32. Pluto has ______ moon(s)
a. one
b. two
c. three
d. four
e. no
33. Both Jupiter and Saturn:
a. contain silicates in their core.
b. interact magnetically with eachother.
c. have highly inclined magnetic poles.
d. give off more heat energy than they receive from the sun.
e. have broad, flat ring systems.
34. Had Jupiter only acquired more mass
a. it would have had more moons.
b. its moon Io would have been larger and more active.
c. it would have ignited into a binary star system with our sun.
d. it would have engulfed Mars.
35. From the cloudtops outward, the Saturnian rings are lettered:
a. A – B – C – D
b. D – A – B – C
c. D – B – C – A
d. C – B – A – D
e. D – C – B – A
Filename: 03 Practice Exam03.doc