Student Name: __________________________________
Mrs. Lee – 8th Grade Physical Science
Period #: ______
Page 1
Chapter 13 Practice Test – Answer Key
______ d
1) If the forces on any object are balanced, a moving object will ______.
a) speed up
b) slow down
c) change direction
d) continue on its original path
______ d
2) Which of the following could NOT happen if the forces on a moving object are
unbalanced?
a) the object will speed up
b) the object will slow down
c) the object will change direction
d) the object will continue on its original path
______ a
3) What force holds the planets in orbit around the sun?
a) gravity
b) friction
c) magnetic force
d) atomic force
______ c
4) The force of gravity between two objects depends on the mass of the objects and the
______.
a) speed at which they are moving
b) amount of friction between them
c) distance between them
d) volume of the object
______ d
5) The force that propels a rocket forward is called ______.
a) velocity
b) escape velocity
c) microgravity
______ d
6) Humans first landed on the moon in ______.
a) 1957
b) 1961
c) 1971
d) 1969
______ a
7) A ______ can carry satellites into orbit.
a) space shuttle
b) space station
c) space probe
d) thrust
d) rover
______ c
8) Astronauts orbiting Earth experience microgravity because ______.
a) gravity is not pulling on them
b) their mass decreases when in space
c) they are falling around Earth
d) they are in a vacuum
______ b
9) Rockets were first developed in ______.
a) the United States
b) China
c) Great Britain
d) the Soviet Union
______ a
10) The goal of the Apollo program was to ______.
a) land astronauts on the moon
b) establish a permanent colony on the moon
c) put the first American in space
d) prove that the moon is solid
______ c
11) The main advantage of a multistage rocket is that ______.
a) it requires less fuel to overcome gravity at the time of launch
b) it can carry humans into space
c) the total weight of the rocket is reduced as the rocket rises
d) it can be reused after returning to Earth
______ c
12) The main purpose of a space station is to ______.
a) show that different countries can work together
b) use solar panels to produce electricity for people on Earth
c) carry out observations and experiments in space
d) take photos and readings of other planets in the solar system
Ch 13 Practice Test – Answer Key
1
Student Name: __________________________________
Mrs. Lee – 8th Grade Physical Science
Period #: ______
Page 2
Chapter 13 Practice Test – Answer Key
______ b
13) An example of an artificial satellite is ______.
a) the Eagle
b) Explorer 1 c) a rover
d) the moon
______ d
14) Which is a cooperative effort among many different countries?
a) the space race
b) the Apollo program
c) NASA
d) the International Space Station
______ b (John Glenn) 15) The first American to orbit Earth was Alan Shepard.
a) True
b) False
______ a
16) In remote sensing, observation satellites collect data about Earth and other objects
without being in direct contact.
a) True
b) False
______ a
17) A space probe is a spacecraft that has no human crew.
a) True
b) False
______ b (Escape Velocity)
a) True
18) Orbital velocity is the velocity a rocket must reach to fly off into space.
b) False
______ b (action)
19) The force of gases shooting out the back of a rocket is an example of a(n)
reaction force.
a) True
b) False
______ a
20) The space race was between ______.
a) the United States and the Soviet Union
b) the Soviet Union and Great Britain
c) the United States and China
______ b
21) Who was the first person in space?
a) John Glenn
b) Yuri Gagarin
c) Alan Shepard
______ b
22) Which kind of spacecraft can carry satellites into orbit?
a) space probe
b) space shuttle
c) space station
______ a
23) A large artificial satellite on which people can live is called a(n) ______.
a) space station
b) observation satellite
c) space probe
______ b
24) An astronaut orbiting Earth experiences microgravity because ______.
a) gravity is not pulling on the astronaut
b) the astronaut is falling around Earth
c) the mass of the astronaut increases in space
______ b (velocity)
25) The speed of a rocket in a given direction is its space spinoffs.
a) True
b) False
Ch 13 Practice Test – Answer Key
2
Student Name: __________________________________
Mrs. Lee – 8th Grade Physical Science
Period #: ______
Page 3
Chapter 13 Practice Test – Answer Key
______ b (satellite)
26) An object that revolves around another object in space is a space probe.
a) True
b) False
______ b (rovers)
27) Some space probes have small robots called satellite that collect samples from
another planet.
a) True
b) False
______ a
28) Space has extreme temperatures because it is nearly a vacuum.
a) True
b) False
______ b (space spinoffs)
a) True
29) Joysticks and memory metals are examples of rovers.
b) False
______ a
30) Escape velocity is the velocity a rocket must reach to fly beyond a planet’s gravitational
pull.
a) True
b) False
______ b
31) In a solid-fuel rocket, both the oxygen and the fuel are in liquid form.
a) True
b) False
______ a
32) Observation satellites collect data using remote sensing.
a) True
b) False
The picture below shows Earth and a spacecraft that is orbiting Earth. The arrows from the spacecraft
represent two different factors that keep the spacecraft represent two different factors that keep the
spacecraft in orbit. Use the picture to answer the following 3 questions:
______ b
33) Interpreting Diagrams: What does the line labeled “A” represent?
a) gravity
b) inertia
c) friction
______ a
34) Interpreting Diagrams: What force does the line labeled “B” represent?
a) gravity
b) inertia
c) friction
______ a
35) Predicting: If Earth suddenly disappeared, what path would the spacecraft take?
a) It would move in the direction of arrow “A”.
b) It would move in the direction of arrow “B”.
c) It would move in the opposite direction of arrow “A”.
Ch 13 Practice Test – Answer Key
3
Student Name: __________________________________
Mrs. Lee – 8th Grade Physical Science
Period #: ______
Page 4
Chapter 13 Practice Test – Answer Key
Each picture below shows the position of a satellite that is in a geostationary orbit around Earth. Use
the pictures to answer the following 2 questions:
______ c
36) Interpreting Diagrams: The “X” in Figure A shows the position of the satellite at 6:00
A.M. Later that same day, the satellite is in the position shown by the “X” in Figure B. What
time is it in Figure B?
a) 6:00 A.M. b) 9:00 A.M. c) 6:00 P.M.
______ b
37) Applying Concepts: Where will the satellite be the next morning at 6:00 A.M.?
a) It will be at the “X” in Figure B
b) It will be at the “X” in Figure A
c) It will be midway between the “X” in Figure A and the “X” in Figure B
Ch 13 Practice Test – Answer Key
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