1) Mercury presents the same side to the Sun 1) A) every third orbit. B) every 12 hours. C) all the time, just like our Moon. D) every other orbit. E) Twice every orbit. 2) Both the Moon and Mercury are geologically inactive and have been that way for most of the history of the solar system. However, about 4 billion years ago, it is thought that 2) A) both bodies were covered in ice. B) the Moon differentiated. C) Mercury had more common volcanic activity than the Moon. D) the Moon had more frequent and violent volcanic activity than Mercury. E) the Moon's atmosphere dissipated. 3) Evidence of liquid water in Mars' distant past suggests that it had a substantial atmosphere compared to what it has presently. What happened to its water vapor? 3) A) The carbon dioxide in its atmosphere dissolved in the water and combined with surface rocks. B) Its atmosphere was mostly hydrogen and helium. Mars' gravity is too weak to hold them. C) Mars initially had such a large Greenhouse effect that the atmosphere became quite hot and slowly escaped. D) It has now all been lost in space, including the carbon dioxide and water vapor. E) The atmosphere has frozen out into the polar ice caps and permafrost as Mars has cooled. 4) Compare the atmospheres of Mars and Venus. 4) A) Both are made of hydrogen and helium, like the jovians. B) Both are chiefly carbon dioxide, but at Mars it can freeze as dry ice. C) Mars is rich in oxygen, like ours, accounting for its red surface. D) Both are too hot for water to now exist as a liquid at the surface. E) Like Earth, nitrogen is the chief atmospheric gas. 5) What is true of the lunar highlands? 5) A) They are less heavily cratered than the mare. B) They are the darker regions of the Moon seen with the naked eye. C) They are found on the Moon's northern hemisphere. D) They are younger than the darker mare. E) They are the oldest part of the lunar surface.. 6) The youngest features visible with telescopes on the Moon are:6) A) the darkest regions of the mare. B) the craters sitting atop the mare. C) the bright polar caps of new ice. D) the scarps recently created by tectonic activity. E) the volcanoes seen erupting in the highlands. 7) What is the result of the Greenhouse effect on the surface environment of Venus? 7) A) It has raised the surface temperature by hundreds of degrees Celsius B) It causes the surface temperature of Venus to become hotter than the Sun. C) Its effect is about the same as on Earth. - 1 -
D) It has little or no effect. E) It has reduced the surface temperature by about 30 degrees Celsius. 8) The NASA missions that landed on Mars in 1976 were the 8) A) the Galileo probe. B) Venera 14. C) Vikings I and II. D) Magellan lander. E) Voyagers. 9) The synodic period of Venus is about how many Earth years? 9) A) about 2 years B) about 5 years C) about 1.25 years D) about 0.7 years E) about 3.5 years 10) Astronomers believe that the Moon did not differentiate to the same degree as Earth because: 10) A) the Moon was formed after the Earth was, so its radioactivity was less. B) the Moon was made of very different materials than our mantle and crust. C) the less dense and smaller moon did not have as much radioactivity as the larger Earth in its core. D) the meteors that hit the moon were lighter than those that hit us, so did not generate as much heat on the surface. E) the Moon was made of solid debris, not liquids like our hydrosphere. 11) The highest peak on Venus is called: 11) A) Cleopatra. B) Lakshmi. C) Shif. D) Gula. E) Maxwell. 12) Our most detailed maps of Venus come from: 12) A) Earth based radio telescopes. B) manned landings. C) direct observation from Earth based optical telescopes. D) the Magellan spaceprobe. E) the Hubble Space Telescope. 13) What physical feature of Mars are atypical compared with the other terrestrial planets? 13) A) its surface composition B) its atmospheric content C) its density D) its rotation rate E) its size 14) Which of these would support the capture theory of the Moon's origin? 14) A) the four large moons of Jupiter orbit its equator B) the Caloris basin on Mercury C) the retrograde orbit and large orbital inclination of Neptune's moon Triton D) the rings of all the jovians lying around their equators E) the Pluto-Charon system 15) Olympus Mons and Maxwell Mons are both 15) A) sheild volcanoes. B) features visible from Earth. - 2 -
C) dormant volcanoes. D) large features on the surface of Mars. E) the two largest known volcanoes in the solar system. 16) Venus is only a little bit (5%) smaller than Earth, and its density is only slightly less than Earth's. Therefore, its mass is: 16) A) just a little bit less than Earth's. B) much less than Earth's (more than 20% different). C) much greater than Earth's (more than 20% different). D) the same as Earth's. E) just a little bit greater than Earth's. 17) The orbiter that gave us the most detailed maps of Venus to date was:17) A) Pioneer 11. B) Cassini. C) Magellan. D) Venera 14. E) Galileo. 18) The main constituent of the martian atmosphere is 18) A) carbon dioxide. B) hydrogen. C) helium. D) nitrogen. E) methane. 19) The scarps on Mercury were probably caused by 19) A) meteorite bombardment. B) tectonic activity. C) volcanism. D) the interior cooling and shrinking. E) a tidal bulge. 20) Why was the summer of 2003 a fine time for Mars observers? 20) A) The Mars Rovers returned live images from the surface. B) The skies were unusually clear and calm. C) Mars was even brighter than Venus for several weeks. D) Mars' north pole was tilted to face the Earth head-on. E) Mars was closer to us than it has been in over 50,000 years. 21) Which statement about the rotations of the Moon and Mercury is FALSE? 21) A) Like our Moon, Mercury does not rotate at all, keeping the same side facing the Sun. B) Our Moon is in a 1:1 synch with the Earth, keeping the same side toward us. C) Mercury is in the 3:2 synch with the Sun, with the same side Sunward at perihelion. D) On Mercury, three days exactly equal two years. E) On the Moon, each "day" lasts about 15 earth days of constant sunlight. 22) Volcanic activity on Venus is thought to be: 22) A) the same as volcanic activity on Earth. B) more frequent and more violent than volcanic activity on Earth. - 3 -
C) less frequent and less violent than volcanic activity on Earth. D) less frequent, but more violent than volcanic activity on Earth. E) more frequent, but less violent than volcanic activity on Earth. 23) Mars is best viewed from Earth when it is at 23) A) aphelion. B) opposition. C) perihelion. D) conjunction. E) none of the above 24) Which type of feature is the best evidence of lunar volcanism? 24) A) vents seen erupting in the mountainous highlands B) craters all over the Moon C) rilles associated with lava flows accompanying the mare formation D) the Orientale Basin E) rays around the latest eruptions 25) Venus' full phase occurs when Venus is at: 25) A) the deferent. B) opposition. C) conjunction. D) inferior conjunction. E) superior conjunction. 26) In size, Mercury is intermediate between: 26) A) Pluto and the Moon. B) the Moon and Mars. C) Mars and Earth. D) Earth and Venus. E) Ceres and Pluto. 27) Why is Mars red? 27) A) Dust storms on the planet have blasted the planet so fiercely that the rocks have reddened. B) The ancient volcanoes poured out vast plains of molten sulfur, much as on Io, which has now solidified and preserved the reddish color. C) Mercuric oxide is abundant and has a red tint. D) The iron in the surface rocks have been oxidized over time. E) Sulfuric acid rain etched a reddish color into iron-rich surface rocks. 28) Because the atmosphere of Venus is so dense, 28) A) clouds cannot form. B) clouds form at an altitude much lower than on Earth. C) clouds form at the same altitude as on Earth. D) clouds form at an altitude much higher than on Earth. E) clouds are made of frozen carbon dioxide ice crystals. 29) The surface of Venus can be observed with: 29) A) the Mt. Wilson 100" telescope. B) the Hubble Space Telescope. C) most amateur telescopes. - 4 -
D) radar observations from Arecibo. E) All of these have provided detailed observations about the surface of our sister planet. 30) Which statement about Mars' two moons is FALSE? 30) A) Both are probably captured asteroids. B) Both are very dark, heavily cratered bodies. C) Both are in retrograde orbits. D) Phobos revolves around Mars in less than a Martian day. E) Phobos is larger than Deimos. 31) The atmospheric pressure on Venus: 31) A) is about the same as on Mercury. B) causes variations in surface temperature. C) is much higher than on Earth. D) shows an extreme change with the seasons. E) is much lower than on Earth. 32) The lunar mare are radioactively dated at: 32) A) 3.9-3.2 billion years old, forming after most of the bombardment was over. B) 4.6 billion years old, forming first among the lunar features. C) 4.2-3.9 billion years old, comparable to the adjacent highlands. D) less than a billion years old, the most recent additions to the Moon. E) 3.5-2.5 billion years old, similar to the formation of our own oceans. 33) What property of Mars is responsible for producing the great heights of its volcanos? 33) A) Its cold temperatures allows the magma to freeze faster. B) Mars has more radioactive material than the Earth. C) Its higher surface gravity allows higher peaks to form. D) Its volcanoes are made of sulfur, like Io's. E) Its thick crust can support larger peaks, and lower surface gravity does not pull them down as much as on Earth. 34) What resonance exists between Venus' rotational period and its synodic period? 34) A) 5:1, with the Earth always closest to the same side of Venus when they pass B) 1:2, like the Cassini Division and the Saturnian Moon Mimas C) 1:1, like the Moon D) 3:2, like the planet Mercury E) There is no apparent match. 35) What is the reason that it is so difficult to view Mercury from Earth? 35) A) Mercury is very dim. B) Mercury is very small. C) Mercury is always very close to the Sun. D) Mercury can't be seen at night. E) Mercury is often hidden by the Moon. 36) What do moonquakes reveal about the Moon? 36) A) It has a differentiated core, displaced away from us by the Moon's rotation. B) It has a strong magnetic field generated by a large molten core. C) Its small, partially molten core has been pulled toward us by tidal forces. D) The Moon has been geologically dead throughout its entire history. E) The Moon is quite active, almost as much so as Jupiter's moon Io. - 5 -
37) The absence of a magnetic field on Venus probably stems from its: 37) A) high surface temperatures. B) slow rotation. C) extremely thick atmosphere. D) lower density than Earth, suggesting an absence of an iron core. E) nearness to the Sun. 38) The largest volcanic structures on Venus are called: 38) A) shield volcanoes. B) calderas. C) crater cones. D) coronae. E) cinder cones. 39) Which of these features is attributed to the shrinking of Mercury's core? 39) A) rilles B) mare C) rays D) craters E) scarps 40) The deepest depression found on the surface of Mars is the 40) A) Mariannas Trench. B) Caloris basin. C) Mare Crisium. D) Valles Marineris rift, E) Hellas Basin of Mars. - 6 -