The Solar System Review Choose the best response. Write the letter of that choice in the space provided. 1. Ptolemy modified Aristotle s model of the universe to include a. Oort clouds. b. retrograde motion. c. comets. d. shooting stars. 2. Copernicus s model of the solar system differed from Ptolemy s because it was a. geocentric. b. lunocentric. c. ethnocentric. d. heliocentric. 3. Kepler s first law states that each planet orbits the sun in a path called a. an ellipse. b. a circle. c. an epicycle. d. a period. 4. Kepler s law that describes how fast planets travel at different points in their orbits is called the law of a. ellipses. b. equal speed. c. equal areas. d. periods. 5. The weak magnetic field around Mercury suggests a. volcanic activity. b. a dense atmosphere. c. a core of molten iron. d. that it is located close to the sun. 6. The planet that rotates in a direction that is opposite the direction of the other planets is a. Mercury. b. Venus. c. the earth. d. Mars. 7. The tilt of the axis of Mars is nearly the same as that of a. Mercury. b. Venus. c. the earth. d. Jupiter. 8. The planet that rotates faster than any other planet in the solar system is a. the earth. b. Jupiter. c. Uranus. d. Pluto. 9. The most distinctive feature of Jupiter is its a. Great Red Spot. b. Great Dark Spot. c. rings. d. elongated orbit. Study Guide 113
Choose the best response. Write the letter of that choice in the space provided. 10. All of the outer planets in the solar system are large except a. Saturn. b. Uranus. c. Neptune. d. Pluto. 11. The asteroid belt exists in a region between the orbits of a. Mercury and Venus. b. Venus and the earth. c. the earth and Mars. d. Mars and Jupiter. 12. The composition of asteroids suggests that they are a. small moons. b. fragments of planetesimals. c. the nuclei of comets. d. environments that possibly can support life. 13. Meteoroids can provide information about a. the composition of the solar nebula before the earth and its moon formed. b. the size of the earth. c. the destiny of the solar system. d. the size of the universe. Critical Thinking 1. Assume that an intelligent life-form exists on Pluto the planet with the longest orbit period in the solar system. Would astronomers on Pluto be likely to propose a heliocentric model of the solar system? Explain your answer. 114 Study Guide
2. If you know the distance from the sun to a planet, what other information can you determine about the orbit of the planet? Explain your answer. 3. The surfaces of some asteroids reflect only small amounts of light. Other asteroids reflect up to 40 percent of the light falling on them. Of what materials would each type of asteroid probably be composed? 4. By constructing a concept map, you make connections that illustrate relationships among certain terms. How would doing so assist your understanding of this chapter? Study Guide 115
Application 1. Suppose that a new planet has just been discovered. It has no rings or moons and has a surface pitted with impact craters. In what group of planets do you think this planet is located? Explain how you know. 2. What type of core do you predict that the new planet mentioned in Question 1 will have? 3. Suppose you live in an unglaciated area and have found a chunk of rock that you suspect might be a stony meteoroid. What data would help you verify your hypothesis? 116 Study Guide
of water vapor on Mercury contributes to its tremendous daily temperature flux. Water vapor helps maintain the earth s moderate temperatures. Pages 602 603: Science & Technology Students can learn more about the Galileo mission to Jupiter on-line by visiting the Galileo home page at NASA s Internet site. Small-Scale Investigation The Solar System (p. 604) Science Process Skills: constructing models, comparing, naming, and labeling Answers to Analysis and Conclusions 1. the sun 2. No. The scale is too large to show the relative sizes of all the planets. 3. The inner planets are closer together than the outer planets. 4. Most models do not accurately represent both the relative size of and the relative distance between the sun and all of the planets. Diameter Distance from sun (cm) (cm) Sun 130.0 Mercury 0.5 5,790 Venus 1.2 10,820 Earth 1.3 14,960 Mars 0.7 22,790 Jupiter 14.3 77,830 Saturn 12.1 142,700 Uranus 5.1 287,100 Neptune 5.0 449,700 Pluto 0.2 591,400 Alternative Lab: Student Planetarium Lab Activity WARD S 80 M 8190 Review Answers to Review 1. b 5. c 9. a 13. a 2. d 6. b 10. d 3. a 7. c 11. d 4. c 8. b 12. b Answers to Critical Thinking 1. Viewed from Pluto without a telescope, the sun looks like any other bright star. Plutonians would have difficulty describing the movements of the solar system. A telescope would enable Plutonians to observe the inner planets and develop a heliocentric model. 2. the orbit period of the planet; if you know a planet s distance from the sun, you can determine the orbit period using Kepler s third law. 3. The dark surface of asteroids composed of carbon would reflect little light; the metallic surface of asteroids composed of iron and nickel would reflect light. 4. Student answers may vary, but they should indicate an understanding that connections made in a concept map would help clarify the relationships among the various bodies of the solar system. Answers to Application 1. the terrestrial planets; the terrestrial planets have no rings, a maximum of two moons, and impact craters on their surfaces. 2. metallic 3. composition of the rock and of the bedrock in the area in which it was found; the composition of a stony meteorite would probably differ from that of the area in which it was found. In-Depth Investigation Crater Analysis (pp. 612 613) Approximate time: 1 class period Objectives: to experiment with making craters; to discover the effect of speed and projectile angle on the crater formed Skills: measuring, observing, inferring, applying, predicting Prelab Discussion Before students begin this investigation, have them name objects in the solar system (other than the earth s moon) that have craters. Ask them if they know of any craters in the United States. Explain that Mercury, the earth s moon, and many other moons in the solar system are covered with craters because they have little or no atmosphere and, therefore, have no direct source of mechanical and chemical weathering. Weathering of the earth s surface and the processes of plate tectonics has caused the disappearance of many of the craters that once covered the planet. T140