ASTRONOMY TEST # 2 – FALL 2011
1. ? planets revolve in a counterclockwise motion when viewed above the Earth’s North Pole. A.no
B.few C.most D.all
2. Comets are primarily made of A.ice B.rocks C.comets are often made of large portions of both ice
and rocks
3. Total Eclipses occur within the A.Umbra B.Penumbra C.Total Eclipses may occur within either the
Umbra or Penumbra
4. ? has the densest atmosphere of the terrestrial planets. A.Venus B.Earth C.Mars D.Mercury
E.Neptune
5. As the focal length of the telescope eyepiece ?, the magnification increases. A.increases B.decreases
C.focal length has nothing to do with magnification
6. The dominant component in a Terrestrial Planet is A.iron B.aluminum C.magnesium D.sulfur
E.silica
7. The Moon’s Maria is ? than the Highlands. A.lighter B.darker
8. There is ? evidence that Mars currently has life. A.very little B.abundant
9. ? are made of ?. A.rocks, minerals B.minerals, rocks
10. McDonald Observatory is in A.Hawaii B.Arizona C.New Mexico D.Chile E.Texas
11. “Sputtering” is a process that may partially account for production of the Moon’s A.maria B.smaller
impact craters C.anorthosite D.basalt E.atmosphere
12. After a Waxing Gibbous moon phase we would next encounter a ? phase. A.New Moon B.Full
Moon
13. “Lobate Scarps”, intercrater plains and smooth plains are characteristic of A.Venus B.Earth C.Mars
D.Mercury E.Neptune
14. Arachnoids, Tesserae and Farra are characteristic of A.Venus B.Earth C.Mars D.Mercury
E.Neptune
15. ? is a method by which high angular resolution may be achieved. A.“seeing” B.brightness
C.magnification D.interferometry E.adaptive optics
16. In theory, there should be ? high tides per day. A.one B.two C.three D.four E.five
17. Deimos and Phobos are moons of A.Venus B.Pluto C.Mars D.Mercury E.Neptune
18. ? has the largest dust storms in the Solar System. A.Venus B.Earth C.Mars D.Mercury
E.Lubbock, Texas
19. The rotation period and axial tilt of Mars is ? to that of Earth. A.similar B.very different
20. The “plane of revolution” that the planets move along is termed the A.eclipse B.ecliptic C.it is both
the “eclipse” and the “ecliptic”
21. Ishtar Terra and Aphrodite Terra are features seen on A.Venus B.Earth C.Mars D.Mercury
E.Neptune
22. Lunar Mountains were created by A.tectonics B.impacts C.lunar mountains were created by
tectonics and impact events
23. ? is the second-brightest object in the night sky. A.Venus B.Earth C.Mars D.Mercury E.Neptune
24. During a ? Eclipse, the Moon is between the Earth and the Sun. A.Lunar B.Solar C.during both
Lunar and Solar Eclipses, the Moon is between the Earth and the Sun
25. ? Jovian Planets have ring systems. A.few B.some C.all
26. Lunar breccias were created by A.tectonics B.impacts C.lunar breccias may have been created by
either tectonics or impacts
27. The largest telescopes in the World are A.refractors B.reflectors C.both refractors and reflectors
may be equally large
28. ? is the smallest planet. A.Venus B.Earth C.Mars D.Mercury E.Neptune
29. The ? Revolution Period of the Moon is longest. A.Sidereal B.Synodic C.the Sidereal and Synodic
Revolution Periods of the Moon are equal in length
30. Most asteroids orbit between A.Mercury and Venus B.Venus and Earth C.Earth and Mars D.Mars
and Jupiter E.Jupiter and Saturn
31. ? is sometimes referred to as “Earth’s Sister Planet” due to its similar size and composition.
A.Venus B.Earth C.Mars D.Mercury E.Neptune
32. The core of ? is huge in comparison to the rest of the planet, probably due to an early impact.
A.Venus B.Earth C.Mars D.Mercury E.Neptune
33. Most rock-forming minerals are A.oxides B.halides C.sulfides D.carbonates E.silicates
34. The atmosphere of Venus is dominated by A.oxygen B.nitrogen C.carbon dioxide D.hydrogen
E.helium
35. “Seeing” is a property largely determined by A.light pollution B.adaptive optics C.atmospheric
turbulence D.relative humidity E.“seeing” is influenced by all of the above
36. ? is often termed the “Red Planet”. A.Venus B.Earth C.Mars D.Mercury E.Neptune
37. In the Southern Hemisphere, free-moving objects appear to veer toward the A.left B.right
38. Olympus Mons seems to have formed ? the Tharsis Bulge. A.before B.after C.Olympus Mons and
the Tharsis Bulge formed at approximately the same time
39. Because we see only one “face” of the Moon, we know that it A.rotates B.does not rotate
40. Seismology is the study of A.igneous rocks B.sedimentary rocks C.metamorphic rocks
D.earthquakes E.the Sun
41. The major atmospheric gas of Mars is A.oxygen B.argon C.carbon dioxide D.nitrogen E.hydrogen
42. Lunar Cycles are about ? long. A.two weeks B.four weeks C.two months D.six months E.one year
43. The Earth is about ? years old. A.200 million B.4.04 billion C.4.6 billion D.8.2 billion E.13.7
billion
44. Ancient surface water on Mars may be indicated by A.rock types B.river channels C.deltas
D.alluvial fans E.all of these features may indicate that surface water was present on Mars
45. ? plate boundaries are “shear boundaries”; they develop due to variable rates of seafloor spreading.
A.divergent B.transform C.convergent D.all of these may be “shear boundaries”
46. The Moon was probably created A.by “splitting” from the Earth during early Solar System
formation B.by an impact event
47. Tides typically occur A.in oceans B.in solid earth C.tides may occur either in oceans or in solid
earth
48. The Borealis Basin is on ?; it is believed to represent a giant impact structure. A.Venus B.Earth
C.Mars D.Mercury E.Neptune
49. ? has the smallest axial tilt of any planet; it also has the most eccentric orbit. A.Venus B.Earth
C.Mars D.Mercury E.Neptune
50. “Modern” ocean salinity A.probably developed early in Earth’s history B.seems to have taken
several hundred million, or even a couple of billion, years to develop
51. The atmospheric density of Mars is about ? percent that of Earth. A.1 B.5 C.10 D.25 E.50
52. Solar Eclipses will only occur around a ? Moon. A.New B.Full C.Solar Eclipses may occur during
New or Full Moons
53. The ice caps of Mars are primarily made of ? ice. A.water B.carbon dioxide
54. A ? consists of a series of photo-sensitive collectors laid out in a chessboard-like pattern.
A.spectrograph B.VLA C.VLBA D.SVLBI E.CCD
55. According to the Titius-Bode Rule, Mercury would be about ? AUs from the Sun. A.0.4 B.0.5
C.0.6 D.0.7 E.0.8
56. Rilles are lunar A.craters B.mountains C.valleys D.all of the above may form “rilles”
57. The asthenosphere lies ? the lithosphere. A.above B.below C.the asthenosphere and lithosphere are
the same layer
58. Which of the following is not true concerning “Dwarf Planets”. A.are usually irregular-shaped
B.orbit directly around the Sun C.cannot clear the neighboring region of planetesimals D.belong to
“larger populations” E.are often associated with the Asteroid Belt, Kuiper Belt or Scattered Disc
59. There ? liquid water on the surface of Mars. A.is B.is no
60. A Waxing Crescent Moon would be seen in the ? sky. A.eastern B.western C.you may see a
Waxing Crescent Moon in either the eastern or western sky
61. “Wolter Telescopes” are utilized in analyzing A.infrared radiation B.visible light C.x-rays
D.ultraviolet radiation D.gamma rays
62. The only other terrestrial planet in the Solar System that seems to have had a plate tectonic history is
A.Venus B.Jupiter C.Mars D.Mercury E.Neptune
63. ? satellites typically have highly-inclined, eccentric orbits. A.regular B.irregular C.both regular and
irregular satellites may have highly-inclined, eccentric orbits
64. The “Caloris Basin” and “Weird Terrain” are on A.Venus B.Earth C.Mars D.Mercury E.Neptune
65. Infrared wavelengths are ? than ultraviolet. A.shorter B.longer C.this refers to the same wavelength
66. Water probably ? present on the Moon. A.is B.is not
67. The dominant component in the Earth’s atmosphere is A.oxygen B.argon C.carbon dioxide
D.aerosols E.nitrogen
68. Jupiter and Saturn have a ? percentage of hydrogen and helium versus Uranus and Neptune.
A.smaller B.larger C.the percentage of hydrogen and helium in all of the Jovian Planets is the same
69. ? metamorphism is most likely due to large-scale tectonics. A.contact B.regional C.impact
70. The “brightness” of a telescopic image would increase with A.larger aperture of the telescope
B.shorter focal length C.”brightness” would increase as the telescope aperture was larger and focal
length was shorter
71. The reason that eclipses only occur about twice a year is due to A.Earth-Moon distance B.Earth-Sun
distance C.ecliptic angles D.all of these factors influence “eclipse seasons”
72. At sea level, atmospheric pressure is about ? pounds per square inch. A.11.5 B.12.2 C.14.7 D.21
E.78
73. The Very Large Array consists of ? telescopes. A.visible light B.gamma ray C.ultraviolet
D.infrared E.radio
74. Minor Planets ? around the Sun. A.orbit directly B.do not orbit directly
75. Due to Moon-Earth gravitation and “conservation of angular momentum”, the Earth’s rotation is ?
and Moon-Earth distance is ?. A.slowing down, decreasing B.slowing down, increasing C.speeding
up, decreasing D.speeding up, increasing
76. Ozone is a form of A.hydrogen B.oxygen C.argon D.carbon dioxide E.nitrogen
77. ? is produced along rift zones at mid-oceanic ridges. A.granite B.basalt C.andesite D.all of these
may be produced along rift zones at mid-oceanic ridges
78. The VERITAS Telescope analyzes A.infrared radiation B.visible light C.x-rays D.ultraviolet
radiation D.gamma rays
79. The Tharsis Bulge and Olympus Mons are features on A.Venus B.Earth C.Mars D.Mercury
E.Neptune
80. The outer core of the Moon is probably A.solid B.liquid C.the Moon does not have an “outer core”
D.the Moon doesn’t have a core at all; it is all crust and mantle
81. In astrophotography, image quality is improved with ? exposure times. A.shorter B.longer
C.exposure times and image quality have nothing to do with one another
82. Centaurs are made of A.ice B.rocks C.centaurs may be made of a combination of ice and rocks
83. ? has “retrograde rotation”. A.Venus B.Earth C.Mars D.Mercury E.all of these planets have
retrograde rotation
84. Which of the following display “phases”? A.Mercury B.Venus C.both Venus and Mercury display
“phases” D.the only object that displays “phases” as seen from the Earth is the Moon
85. Optical telescopes have ? resolution than radio telescopes. A.better B.worse C.the resolution is
typically the same
86. The most common element in the Earth’s crust is A.silicon B.aluminum C.iron D.sodium
E.oxygen
87. ? has a lower atmospheric temperature of 900°F due to the greenhouse effect. A.Venus B.Earth
C.Mars D.Mercury E.Neptune
88. Most radio telescopes are A.refractors B.reflectors C.radio telescopes do not function as either
refractors or reflectors
89. The most abundant group of rocks are A.metamorphic B.sedimentary C.igneous D.all of these are
equally abundant
90. The Sun contains almost ? percent of the known mass in the Solar System. A.84 B.88 C.92 D.95
E.100
91. Earth’s seasons are caused by A.Earth-Sun distance B.axial tilt of the Earth C.both Earth-Sun
distance and axial tilt of the Earth causes the seasons
92. The Earth’s Moon ? the largest natural satellite in the Solar System. A.is B.is not
93. The “Dynamo Effect” best explains the generation of the A.atmosphere B.asthenosphere
C.lithosphere D.mantle E.magnetosphere
94. Most surface igneous rocks on Mars are A.anorthosites B.basalts C.andesites D.granites
E.rhyolites
95. “Subduction” is a process that occurs along ? plate boundaries. A.divergent B.transform
C.convergent D.“subduction” may occur along any of these plate boundaries
96. Telescopes which study highly-energetic electromagnetic radiation, such as Neutrino Telescopes,
A.have very complex optical systems consisting of “nested cylinders” B.often have no imageforming optical systems
97. Which of the following on a telescope would be an “objective”. A.mirror B.eyepiece C.both of
these are objectives on a telescope
98. The largest volcano in the Solar System is on A.Venus B.Earth C.Mars D.Mercury E.Neptune
99. Which of the following would probably have the best angular resolution? A.VLA B.SVLBI
C.VLBA D.EVN
100. This is test “A”. Please answer “A” for question # 100.