Exploring the Mysteries of the Solar System, Exams of Advanced Education

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What is the rotation period of Mercury (sidereal day)? - Correct Answer-59 Earth days How long is one solar day on Mercury? - Correct Answer- Earth days What is orbital period of Mercury? - Correct Answer-88 Earth days What is partially molten and takes up 75% of the diameter of its planet? - Correct Answer-Mercury's core What planet is smaller than many moons in the SS? - Correct Answer-Mercury What is the range of topography on Mercury like? - Correct Answer-very small variety

What planet has the most extreme temperatures in the SS? - Correct Answer-Mercury (800°F to -350°F) What planet has the most eccentric orbit in the SS (besides Pluto)? - Correct Answer-Mercury ___ Mercury day = ___ Mercury years - Correct Answer-1; 2 What is the spin orbit resonance of Mercury? - Correct Answer-3: What feature on Mercury points either towards or away from the Sun? - Correct Answer-Caloris Basin What is the Caloris Basin? - Correct Answer-a huge basin near the top of Mercury infilled with lava What is the Renior Basin? - Correct Answer-a peak ring basin on Mercury that is larger than central peak craters What does it mean when there is a ring-in-ring crater over a complex crater? - Correct Answer-the impact was bigger

What is the Tir Planitia? - Correct Answer-a smooth plain on Mercury due to volcanism What is the Discovery Rupes? - Correct Answer-prominent topographic scarp that is 2 km high and 650 km long What is a prominent feature of the Basho Crater? - Correct Answer-dark material ejected around the crater (made of carbon and dark because inefficient at absorbing neutrons) What happened to Mercury as it cooled? - Correct Answer-it shrank, which crates lobate scarps (pieces of crust folded over each other) When will you see Mercury on Earth? - Correct Answer-at dusk and at dawn What does a partially molten core result in? - Correct Answer- a magnetic field

What is the relation of Mercury's compressed and uncompressed densities? - Correct Answer-relatively the same What is the definition of sidereal day? - Correct Answer- rotation on the axis What is the definition of solar day? - Correct Answer-sun directly overhead until the next time sun is directly overhead (longer than sidereal day) Where and why is there water ice on Mercury? - Correct Answer-on the poles because they are always in the shade What is the "sister planet" of Earth? - Correct Answer-Venus What is unique about how Venus rotates? - Correct Answer-it is spinning "backward" because it was knocked upside down (possibly by collision) What element is Venus' atmosphere mostly made of? - Correct Answer-CO2 (very thick)

What is the rotation period of Venus? - Correct Answer- Earth days What is the orbital period of Venus? - Correct Answer- Earth days What planet has been visited the most? - Correct Answer- Venus What was Magellan? - Correct Answer-4 year mission to Venus that captured very detailed surface images (120m res) What is Venus' surface like? - Correct Answer-rough, large craters, lots of volcanism What is the Ishtar Terra? - Correct Answer-large, high- standing, continent-like plateau in the South of Venus (top of our pics) What is the Aphrodite Terra? - Correct Answer-continent-like structure on Venus with Earth-like mountains

What is the Alpha Regio? - Correct Answer-tessera terrain on Venus, complex deformation contractional What is the Ovda Regio? - Correct Answer-strike-slip fault in tessera terrain on Venus What is the distribution of volcanoes like on Venus? - Correct Answer-random, not along fault lines like Earth What are coronae? - Correct Answer-massive circular centers of volcanism that have collapsed (very prevalent on Venus) What is the largest corona on Venus? - Correct Answer- Artemis Which planet has a runaway greenhouse effect? - Correct Answer-Venus What kind of dust covers the surface of Venus? - Correct Answer-sulfuric acid dust

What is the reasoning behind the idea that Venus once had oceans on its surface? - Correct Answer-a very high deuterium-hydrogen ratio What is the rotation period of Earth? - Correct Answer- Earth hours What is the orbital period of Earth? - Correct Answer- Earth days What is the largest terrestrial planet? - Correct Answer-Earth What are the four main features of Earth? - Correct Answer- volcanism, tectonism, sedimentation, and impact cratering What is Earth's atmosphere mostly made of? - Correct Answer-nitrogen and oxygen What are massive dunes on Earth a result of? - Correct Answer-sedimentation

What is the lithosphere? - Correct Answer-the crust and brittle upper mantle What is Aurora Borealis on Earth a result of? - Correct Answer- magnetic field What is the consistency of the asthenosphere on Earth? - Correct Answer-like taffy What are the two types of seismic waves on Earth? - Correct Answer-P-waves (compression) and S-waves (sheer) What did Ortelius do? - Correct Answer-figured out that the coastlines of Africa and South America are like puzzle pieces, which eventually led to the idea of plate tectonics What did Suess do? - Correct Answer-proposed that there was once a supercontinent called Gondwana based off of how he found a plant (Glossopteris) on multiple continents What did Wegener do? - Correct Answer-primary contributor of the idea of continental drift

What is magnetic striping a result of on Earth? - Correct Answer-sometimes the magnetic field switches, north becomes south and south becomes north How old are the ocean basins on Earth? - Correct Answer- million years old What separates the lithosphere and asthenosphere on Earth?

• Correct Answer-Brittle-Ductile transitions What is essential for plate tectonics and why? - Correct Answer-Water because it weakens rock What did Grigg do? - Correct Answer-figured out that solids start breaking down and flow at 2/3 of the melting temperature What is the rotation period of Mars? - Correct Answer- Earth hours and 40 Earth minutes

What is the orbital period of Mars? - Correct Answer- Earth days What is the relation of the uncompressed and compressed density of Mars? - Correct Answer-relatively equal Is Mars a real planet? - Correct Answer-No, it is a planetary embryo ___ Martian year(s) ~ ___ Earth year(s) - Correct Answer-1; 2 Why is Mars so small? - Correct Answer-Grand Tack (was left stranded by planetesimals, so nothing was around for accretion) What did Lowell do? - Correct Answer-believed that tgere was intelligent life on Mars because there is evidence of canals (water) What makes Mars red? - Correct Answer-iron oxide (rust)

What are the moons of Mars? - Correct Answer-Phobos and Deimos (possibly captured asteroids) What Martian moon is on track to collide with it? - Correct Answer-Phobos What is the Valles Marineris? - Correct Answer-the big gash on the surface of Mars that is the length of the USA What part of Mars is low terrain? - Correct Answer-top of Mars (possibly due to a Pluto-sized impact) What is the Olympus Mons? - Correct Answer-big volcano in the high Tharsis region that is two times the height of Mount Everest What mission took the first colored images of Mars? - Correct Answer-Viking landers What planet is considered the deathbed of landers? - Correct Answer-Mars

What happened with the Beagle mission? - Correct Answer- landed on Mars, but its antenna didn't protrude, which means it was never heard from again How did Sojourner land? - Correct Answer-covered in balloons so it just bounced until it came to a stop What was the name of the rover of the Pathfinder missions? - Correct Answer-Sojourner What is the evidence that water was/is on Mars? - Correct Answer-streaks in a canyon wall, "snow", ice found inches below the surface, valley network ridges, polar caps, etc. What is the Gusev Crater? - Correct Answer-a crater on Mars that seemed to be filled with water at one point (a lake) What is the reasoning of life on Mars? - Correct Answer- appearance of methane in the atmosphere, and microbial life can produce methane What hinders our visibility of Mars? - Correct Answer-global dust storms

What does a "rat tool" do (MERs)? - Correct Answer-drills into rock to retrieve samples of fresh rock Why are parachutes not very helpful when landing on Mars? - Correct Answer-there is not much atmosphere to hold on to What happened to Spirit? - Correct Answer-it got covered in dust (dust covered the solar panels so no power) How did Curiosity (MSL) land? - Correct Answer-a mothership dropped it down Where is the Curiosity rover headed now? - Correct Answer- on its way to climbing Mount Sharp What did the Mars Phoenix Lander do? - Correct Answer- found ice just a few inches below the surface with its scoopy tool What is the equation of the motion of inertia? - Correct Answer-I = kMR^

What is the moment of inertia for a hollow sphere? - Correct Answer-k =. What is the moment of inertia for a homogeneous sphere? - Correct Answer-k =. What is the moment of inertia for core = 1/2 R with 2xP? - Correct Answer-k =. What are the characteristics of a Brown Dwarf? - Correct Answer-the Sun and Jupiter's lovechild, too small to fuse hydrogen (doesn't shine), can fuse deuterium, keeps lithium for a while What does the diamond anvil cell tell us? - Correct Answer- what happens to elements under immense pressure (like deep inside planets) What is the equation of state? - Correct Answer-PV = NRT (pressure x volumme = moles x constant x temperature)

What does the EOS tell us? - Correct Answer-shows the relationship of mass vs. radius vs. density What does the polytropic index (n) tell us? - Correct Answer- relationship between density vs. pressure What mission took a grand tour of planet flybys? - Correct Answer-Voyager missions How many atmospheres of CO2 can we get out of the CO that is trapped in rock on Earth? - Correct Answer- What does the moment of inertia tell us? - Correct Answer-the distribution of mass in a spherical body What is the composition of Jupiter? - Correct Answer-90% hydrogen, 10% helium How many things are orbiting Jupiter? - Correct Answer- What is unique about the South Pole of Jupiter? - Correct Answer-It is blue!

What happened to the Shoemaker-Levy comet? - Correct Answer-it broke apart because it got too close to Jupiter, eventually colliding into the planet (witnessed by Galileo mission) What is the rotation period of Jupiter? - Correct Answer- Earth hours and 56 Earth minutes What is the orbital period of Jupiter? - Correct Answer-11. Earth years What planet has the most intense magnetic field in the SS? - Correct Answer-Jupiter What are the white spots on Jupiter? - Correct Answer- ammonia (NH3) clouds called "zones" What are the red spots on Jupiter? - Correct Answer- ammonium hydrosulfide (NH4SH) clouds called "belts"

What forces drive major winds? - Correct Answer-solar radiation and rotation (Coriolis effect) What is the rotation period of Saturn? - Correct Answer- Earth hours and 42 Earth minutes What is the orbital period of Saturn? - Correct Answer-29. Earth years Why are there seasons on Saturn? - Correct Answer-planet is tilted on its axis What is peculiar about Saturn's North Pole? - Correct Answer- there is an unexplainable hexagonal shape What are Saturn's rings made up of? - Correct Answer- boulder-sized chunks of dirty water ice (10 m thick) What is the moon closest to Saturn? - Correct Answer-Pan (weirdly shaped)

What do all gas giants have deep inside the planets? - Correct Answer-metallic liquid hydrogen How are gas giants formed? - Correct Answer-protoplanetary disk or core accretion What makes Uranus and Neptune blue? - Correct Answer- gaseous methane (all of the other visible light colors are absorbed) What is the rotational period of Uranus? - Correct Answer- Earth hours and 14 Earth minutes What is the orbital period of Uranus? - Correct Answer-84. Earth years How many moons does Uranus have? - Correct Answer- What planet is rotating on its side? - Correct Answer-Uranus (tilted 98°)

Do most planets in the universe resemble Uranus/Neptune or Jupiter/Saturn? - Correct Answer-Uranus/Neptune Which planet has the strongest winds in the SS? - Correct Answer-Neptune (over 2000 km/h) What is the composition of Uranus' atmosphere? - Correct Answer-83% hydrogen, 15% helium, 2% methane What is the rotation period of Neptune? - Correct Answer- Earth hours and 6 Earth minutes What is the orbital period of Neptune? - Correct Answer- Earth years How many moons does Neptune have? - Correct Answer- What are the names of the Galilean moons? - Correct Answer- Io, Europa, Callisto, and Ganymede How often do the moons line up? - Correct Answer-Every 7 days

Which of the Galilean moons is most heavily cratered? - Correct Answer-Callisto What is the largest moon in the SS? - Correct Answer- Ganymede (Jupiter) What are some features of Ganymede? - Correct Answer- magnetic field, water and rock differentiation, possible plate tectonics, orbit = 7 Earth days What are the brown streaks/spots on Europa made of? - Correct Answer-salt Which Galilean moon has liquid water oceans under the icy surface? - Correct Answer-Europa How would one describe Io? - Correct Answer-sulfur volcanic hell world (yay) Which Galilean moon has lava lakes constantly spewing out lava? - Correct Answer-Io

What is the Loki Patera? - Correct Answer-a 127-mile-across lava lake on Io (biggest volcanic area on Io) What is Saturn's largest moon? - Correct Answer-Titan What planet does Titan resemble? - Correct Answer-Venus (dense atmosphere) What compound are the lakes and weather on Titan made out of? - Correct Answer-methane What did the Cassini-Huygen mission probe find on Titan? - Correct Answer-methane ice chunks What is peculiar about Enceladus' South Pole? - Correct Answer-it is hot (spewing hot water and methane) due to a water pocket popping through the rocky core Which moon in the SS has a strange equatorial ridge? - Correct Answer-Iapetus

Which Saturnian moon looks like an asteroid-esque lump of ice? - Correct Answer-Hyperion What is Neptune's largest moon? - Correct Answer-Triton What is characteristic of Triton's rotation? - Correct Answer-it spins backwards Which moon is thought to be a "captured Pluto"? - Correct Answer-Triton What is Triton's surface made of? - Correct Answer-frozen nitrogen Why are the outer SS moons icy? - Correct Answer-the early protoplanetary disk is colder the further away from the Sun one gets When was Pluto discovered? - Correct Answer-1930 What is the orbital period of Pluto? - Correct Answer-248 Earth years

What is the Tombaugh Regio? - Correct Answer-heart-shaped structure of fresh nitrogen/CO ice on Pluto What are tholins? - Correct Answer-organic matter that appears red What is the name of Pluto's moon? - Correct Answer-Charon Why do Pluto and Charon orbit each other? - Correct Answer- Charon is so large in comparison to Pluto (similar to Earth- Moon relationship) What are the two possible results from mean motion resonances? - Correct Answer-reject objects or trap objects What is the Nice Model? - Correct Answer-originally Neptune was more inner than Uranus, then the Kuiper belt objects became very eccentric, resulting in Neptune being flung out past Uranus

What happens if a planetesimal crosses the orbit of 2 giant planets? - Correct Answer-it is rejected out of the SS What happens if a planetesimal crosses the orbit of 1 giant planet? - Correct Answer-it gets thrown out primarily, but eventually finds its way back into the SS What causes a giant planet to move outward? - Correct Answer-interaction with planetesimals What does the Doppler Method tell us? - Correct Answer-the Sun wobbles when there is a large planet in its system What was the first exoplanet discovered? - Correct Answer-51 Pegasi What are hot Jupiters? - Correct Answer-Jupiter-like planets found very near there star How do hot Jupiters support the Grand Tack? - Correct Answer-planets that large cannot form that close to a star, so the planet must have migrated inward after formation

What was the first multiplanetary system found besides our own SS? - Correct Answer-Upsilon Andromedae How does the Kepler telescope find new systems? - Correct Answer-it notices the diminishing of light when a planet crosses in front of a star What type of planets have we found the most of in the universe? - Correct Answer-Super-Earths