Astronomy 263 Chp 8 Purdue – Flashcards
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______, ________, and ________ build up structures on the terrestrial planets, while ______ tears them down a.impacts, erosion, volcanism; tectonism b. impacts, tectonism, volcanism; erosion c. tectonism, volcanism, erosion; impacts d. tectonism, impacts, erosion; volcanism
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ANSWER B IMPACTS, TECTONISM, VOLCANISM; EROSION
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If crater A is inside crater B, we know that a. crater A was formed before crater B b. crater B was formed before crater A c. both craters were formed at about the same time d. crater B formed crater A e. crater A formed crater B
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ANSWER B CRATER B WAS FORMED BEFORE CRATER A
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If radioactive element A decays into radioactive element B with a half-life of 20 seconds, then after 40 seconds, a. none of element A will remain b. none of element B will remain c. half of element A will remain d. one-quarter of element A will remain
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ANSWER D ONE-QUARTER OF ELEMENT A WILL REMAIN
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Scientists can learn about the interiors of the terrestrial planets from a. seismic waves b. satellite observations of gravitational fields c. physical arguments about cooling d. satellite observations of magnetic fields e. all of the above
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ANSWER E ALL OF THE ABOVE
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______ waves are compressional, while ______ waves oscillate perpendicular to their line of travel a. longitudinal; transverse b. transverse; longitudinal c. P waves; S waves d. S waves; P waves e. both a and c f. both b and d
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p waves = compressional/longitudinal waves s waves = transverse or oscillate perpendicular to their line of travel ANSWER E BOTH A AND C
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Earth's interior is heated by a. angular momentum and gravity b. radioactive decay and gravity c. radioactive decay and tidal effects d. angular momentum and tidal effects e. gravity and tidal effects
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angular momentum will keep the core of the earth spinning but heat it and tidal effects functionally heat an object ANSWER C RADIOACTIVE DECAY AND TIDAL EFFECTS
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Lava that flows on the moon and mercury created large, smooth plains. We don't see similar features on Earth because a. earth has less lava b. earth had fewer large impacts in the past c. earth has plate tectonics that recycle the surface d. earth is large compared to the size of these plains, so they are not as noticeable e. earth rotates much faster than either of these other worlds
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ANSWER C EARTH HAS PLATE TECTONICS THAT RECYCLE THE SURFACE
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rank the following worlds by the strength of wind erosion currently operating on their surfaces, from greatest to least: a. mercury b. venus c. earth d. moon e. mars
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ANSWER c. EARTH b. VENUS e. MARS d. MOON a. MERCURY
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differentiation, in the context of planets, means a. comparing a planet to others to better understand its features b. that different parts of the planet have different compositions c. that different planets have different compositions d. calculating the slope of the trajectory
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ANSWER B THAT DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE PLANET HAVE DIFFERENT COMPOSITIONS
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scientists know the history of Earth's magnetic field because a. the magnetic field hasn't changed since the formation of earth b. they see how it's changing today, and project backward in time c. the magnetic field becomes frozen into rocks, and plate tectonics spreads those rocks out d. they compare the magnetic fields on other planets to earth's e. there are written documents of magnetic field measurements since the beginning of Earth
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we can study the orientation of structures in rocks to determine where the field lines pointed, and by dating those rocks, we can trace the changes of the earth's magnetic field ANSWER C THE MAGNETIC FIELD BECOMES FROZEN INTO ROCKS, AND PLATE TECTONICS SPREADS THOSE ROCKS OUT
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T/F volcanism has been present on all the terrestrial planets
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ANSWER TRUE
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T/F impact cratering no longer affects the terrestrial planets
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they are much more rare than they were 3-5 billion years ago, but impact craters do still exist ANSWER FALSE
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T/F the geological processes that shape a planet have ceased on Earth
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ANSWER FALSE
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T/F large worlds remain geologically active longer than small ones
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larger planets have more internal heat than smaller ones, so their cores remain geologically active for longer ANSWER TRUE
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T/F wind erosion is an important process on venus
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ANSWER TRUE
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on the four processes that shape the surface of a terrestrial world, the one with the greatest potential for catastrophic rearrangement is a. impact cratering b. volcanism c. tectonsim e. erosion
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ANSWER A IMPACT CRATERING
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geologists can determine the relative age of features on a planet because a. the ones on top must be older b. the ones on top must be younger c. the larger ones must be older d. the larger ones must be younger e. all the features we can see are the same age
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ANSWER B THE ONES ON TOP MUST BE YOUNGER
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geologists can determine the actual age of features on a planet by a. radiometric dating of rocks retrieved from the planet b. comparing cratering rates on one planet to those on another c. assuming that all features on a planetary surface are the same age d. both a and b e. both b and c
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ANSWER D BOTH A AND B -RADIOMETRIC DATING OF ROCKS RETRIEVED FROM THE PLANETS -COMPARING CRATERING RATES ON ONE PLANET TO THOSE ON ANOTHER
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impacts on the terrestrial planets and the moon a. are more common than they used to be b. have occured at approximately the same rate since the solar system formed c. are less common than they used to be d. periodically become more common and then are less common for a while e. never occur anymore
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ANSWER C ARE LESS COMMON THAN THEY USED TO BE
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comparative planetology is a particularly useful approach to a study of planets because a. physical explanations should apply to more than one object b. very few data have been collected c. all the planets are alike d. we can't actually travel to other planets
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the laws of physics are the same everywhere so they apply to more than one object ANSWER A PHYSICAL EXPLANATIONS SHOULD APPLY TO MORE THAN ONE OBJECT
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Earth has fewer craters than Venus. Why? a. earth's atmosphere provides better protection than Venus's b. earth is a smaller target than Venus c. earth is closer to the asteroid belt d. earth's surface experiences more erosion
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erosion= wind, water, lava ANSWER D EARTH'S SURFACE EXPERIENCES MORE EROSION
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Imagine that you are rock collecting in Arizona and you find rock containing shock-modified quartz. You immediately know that the rock a. formed during an impact b. formed in a volcano c. has been heavily eroded d. was crushed by tectonic plates
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ANSWER A FORMED DURING AN IMPACT
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Scientists propose an early period of heavy bombardment in the solar system because a. the moon is heavily cratered b. all the craters on the moon are old c. the smooth part of the moon is nearly as old as the heavily cratered part d. all the craters on the moon are young
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ANSWER A THE MOON IS HEAVILY CRATERED
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scientists know that Earth was once completely molten because a. the surface is smooth b. the interior layers are denser c. the chemical composition indicates that d. volcanoes exist today
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In a liquid, denser materials always sink to the bottom. ANSWER B THE INTERIOR LAYERS ARE DENSER
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Earth's magnetic field cannot be due to permanent magnets because a. the core is too hot b. the field changes its strength c. the field changes its orientation d. all of the above
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ANSWER D ALL OF THE ABOVE
