AST 101 Test 3 - Practice Questions

The lithosphere of a planet is the layer that consists of

the rigid rocky material of the crust and uppermost portion of the mantle.

Which internal energy source produces heat by converting gravitational potential energy into thermal energy?

both Accretion and Differentiation

Which internal energy source is the most important in continuing to heat the terrestrial planets today?

Radioactivity

Which of the following show evidence of ancient river beds?

Mars

How does seafloor crust differ from continental crust?

Seafloor crust is thinner, younger, and higher in density.

How large is an impact crater compared to the size of the impactor?

10 times larger

The terrestrial planet cores contain mostly metal because

metals sank to the center during a time when the interiors were molten throughout.

How fast do plates move on Earth?

a few centimeters per year

The relatively few craters that we see within the lunar maria

were formed by impacts that occurred after those that formed most of the craters in the lunar highlands.

A planet is most likely to have tectonic activity if it has

high internal temperature.

Which of the following is not evidence for plate tectonics on Earth?

existence of volcanoes

Why does Venus have such a great difference in temperature between its "no atmosphere" temperature and its actual temperature?

It has a slow rotation.

Convection occurs in the troposphere but not in the stratosphere because

lower altitudes of the troposphere are warmer than higher altitudes, unlike in the stratosphere.

Why does the burning of fossil fuels increase the greenhouse effect on Earth?

Burning releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

Earth has been gradually warming over the past few decades. Based on a great deal of evidence, scientists believe that this warming is caused by

human activities that are increasing the concentration of greenhouse gases in Earth's atmosphere.

How many more times is the atmospheric pressure in Jupiter's core greater than the atmospheric pressure at Earth's surface?

100 million

The Huygens probe took numerous pictures as it descended to Titan's surface in 2005. What did the pictures show?

features or erosion, including what appeared to be dry river valleys and lakebeds

According to our theory of solar system formation, why did Uranus and Neptune end up to be much less massive than Jupiter and Saturn?

Particles in the solar nebula were more spread out at greater distances, so that accretion took longer and there was less time to pull in gas before the solar wind cleared the nebula.

Which of the following best describes why we see horizontal "stripes" in photographs of Jupiter and Saturn?

The light stripes are regions of high clouds, and the dark stripes are regions where we can see down to deeper, darker clouds.

How does the greenhouse effect work?

Greenhouse gases absorb thermal radiation that is emitted by the surface.

How much of the mass of the moon system around Jupiter is in regular moons rather than irregular moons?

99.997%

What is a regular satellite?

One that is in an inclined and eccentric orbit

What kind of surface features may result from tectonics?

mountains
valleys
volcanos
cliffs

Which of the following best describes why the smaller terrestrial worlds have cooler interiors than the larger ones?

They have relatively more surface area compared to their volumes.

What drives the motion of the tectonic plates on Earth?

convection cells in the mantle

Why are there fewer large craters on the seafloor than on the continents?

The seafloor crust is younger than the continental crust.

Volcanism is more likely on a planet that

has high internal temperatures.

Which of the following describes impact cratering?

the excavation of bowl-shaped depressions by asteroids or comets striking a planet's surface

There are no aurora on Venus because it

lacks a strong magnetic field.

Which of the following best describes rain on Venus?

It has sulfuric acid rain in its atmosphere, but the drops evaporate before hitting the surface.