1. Nearly 2,000 extra-Solar planets have been discovered in the last
20 years. What methods
have been used
to discover these planets? Desscribe the methods. What is the Doppler
Effect? Describe how the Doppler Effect works.
What is meant by wavelength? What is meant by frequency?
What is gravitational microlensing?
2. How do the new planetary systems compare to our Solar System? What do they
tell us about how our Solar System formed?
4. What is meant by accretional heating? Radioactive heating? What are
the primary nuclei that heat the Earth?
5. Describe how one uses radioactive age dating to determine the age
of a rock.
9. List the ways astronomers probe the interiors of the
Terrestrial planets.
Describe how magnetism arises. How does
magnetism tell us things about the interiors of Terrestrial planets?
What has been the most useful probe for the interior of the Earth?
What has been the best method for Mercury?
11. Why do large planets like the
Earth have active geologies while small planets like the
Moon are geologically dead? Describe the argument used to show the relative
rates at which large objects cool compare to small objects.
The argument used to show that large planets
cool more slowly than small planets lead to what are known as scaling laws.
What is the most volcanically active body in the Solar System? How does
this result fit with our derived scaling law for the cooling of planets?
What is the explanation for this result?<>br>
Moon are geologically dead.
1. When we refer to the process of chemical differentiation, we are talking about the process whereby
a. the planets form by first accreting iron and then adding layers of the lighter layers sequentially b. the dust grains and other particles sink to the mid-plane of the Solar Nebula c. the lithosphere rises so that it sits on top of the asthenosphere * d. the heavier (more dense) elements sink to the center of the young Earth e. the Terrestrial planets form closer to the Sun than do the Jovian planets
2. Of the following planets, which one's orbital characteristics differs the most from the other listed planets?
* a. Mercury b. Earth c. Uranus d. Neptune e. Jupiter
3. Which of the following is a characteristic of the Terrestrial planets?
a. high density b. solid outer layers (hard surfaces) c. small sizes (diameters < diameter of the Earth) d. they are not very far from the Sun (a < 2 A.U.) * e. All of the above are charateristics of the Terrestrial planets.
4. The chemical composition of the atmosphere of Mars is most similar to the atmosphere of
a. Jupiter * b. Venus c. the Earth d. the Moon e. Mercury
5. The plastic region in the interior of the Earth where energy is transported by convective motions is the
a. core b. mantle * c. asthenosphere d. lithosphere e. crust
6. We expect the Earth's core to be more dense than its crust because
a. in the early stages of the Earth's formation, its interior was molten (or at least, it was soft) b. the density of material in the crust is less than the overall average density of the Earth c. any material becomes more dense as it is compressed by the weight of the material lying above it * d. all of the above are correct e. only a and b are correct
7. Active geology on a planet
a. requires the existence of a lithosphere b. requires an extensive and thick atmosphere c. only occurs when the planet has a sizable moon * d. will only occur if the planet has a hot interior e. will only occur on smaller planets, in general
8. Continental drift (plate tectonic activity) may be driven by
a. strong winds b. ocean currents c. earthquakes d. volcanism * e. convection
9. The surface of Mercury is more like that of _____ while its interior is more like that of _____ .
a. the Moon; Jupiter b. Mars; Venus * c. the Moon; the Earth d. Mars; Jupiter e. Mars; the Earth
10. Which of the following is a true statement about an S wave?
a. It is a wave whose disturbance is in a direction parallel to its direction of propagation * b. An example of an S wave is a wave travelling down a rope c. An example of an S wave is a compression wave moving along a spring d. S waves can only be produced by earthquakes. e. S waves can only propagate along the surfaces of planets
11. A measurement of the density of a planet can tell us
* a. the rough composition of the planet b. the age of the planet c. the mass of the planet d. the size (diameter) of the planet e. All of the above can be deduced from only the density of a planet.
12. The heat which melted the young Terrestrial planets came primarily from
a. nuclear fusion reactions similar to those that heat the Sun b. the sunlight absorbed from the young Sun c. the decay of radioactive elements * d. the high-energy impacts (accretion) of planetesimals e. the energy produced by the burning of fossil fuels
13. Based on the composition of the Earth, we define the following regions in the interior of the Earth (in order of increasing distance from the center of the Earth)
a. troposphere, mesosphere, stratosphere * b. core, mantle, crust c. mantle, core, crust d. lithosphere, hydropshere, asthenosphere e. core, asthenosphere, lithosphere
14. In astrometric searches for other solar systems,
a. we search for transits of planets in front of candidate stars (eclipses) b. we search for small periodic changes in the wavelengths of the radiation from nearby stars c. we search for small periodic changes in the pulsation period of pulsars * d. we search for small periodic changes in the positions of stars e. we search evidence of young forming stars