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105 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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During its full phase, the Moon sets at approximately:
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6 AM.
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For astronauts living on the Moon, the time between sunrises is:
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29.5 days.
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The Declination of the Sun is 0 degrees:
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On the Vernal and Autumnal Equinox.
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1/60th of a degree is equal to:
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an arcminute.
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The point in the sky directly above the observer is called:
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the zenith.
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An annular eclipse is
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when the moon's angular size is not big enough to cover the full face of the Sun.
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In astronomy, the term `ecliptic' means
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The path that the Sun takes across the sky.
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Why is the solar day longer than a sidereal day?
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Because Earth revolves around the sun.
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A Full Moon crosses the Celestial Meridian at
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Midnight.
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A sidereal day is:
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23 hours 56 minutes.
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The precession (`wobbling') of the Earth causes the stars to slowly shift their positions relative to the Celestial Coordinate system. The Celestial North Pole traces a circle on the sky, moving from near Polaris, traveling past Deneb and Vega, and then back to Polaris. This precession has a period of:
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26,000 years.
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Mars is at opposition:
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Every 780 days.
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Solar eclipses occur:
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only during new moon.
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Partial or total solar eclipses happen approximately
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Every six months
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The distance from the Earth to the Sun is:
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1 A.U. or 93 million miles
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During which phase of the Moon is the Moon on the meridian at 6 AM?
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Third quarter.
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What planet has the fastest speed in its orbit around the Sun, in km/s?
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Mercury.
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Pluto is moving fastest in its orbit:
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when it is closest to the Sun.
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Ptolemy is best known for:
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His book entitled `The Almagest'.
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What planet goes though phases, like the Moon, as seen from Earth?
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Venus.
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If a comet orbiting the Sun has a sidereal period of 8 years, what would be the semi-major axis of its orbit?
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4 A.U
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The large ancient `circle and spokes' made up of stones in northern Wyoming, thought to have astronomical and/or religious significance, is called:
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The Big Horn Medicine Wheel.
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What is one way to measure the relative size of the Earth and the Moon, without using advanced technology?
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Time a lunar eclipse
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The Sun is 3500 times more massive than Saturn. Therefore, the gravitational force that Saturn exerts on the Sun is:
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the same as the force that the Sun exerts on Saturn.
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In Kepler's Third Law, P2 = a3, the `a' stands for:
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the semi-major axis of the orbit.
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Who was Tycho Brahe's assistant?
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Kepler
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Aristotle
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Supported the geocentric model of the Universe.
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Galileo was the first person to observe:
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The phases of Venus
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Assume your mass is 60 kg on the surface of the Earth. If you were freely floating in space far from a planet or moon, your mass would be:
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60 kg
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Newton's Second Law of Motion, in mathematical form, states:
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F = MA.
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What scientist first measured the relative size of the Sun and Earth?
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Aristarchus.
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If the distance between the Earth and the Moon decreased by a factor of 3, how would the gravitational force between them change?
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It would increase by a factor of 9.
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An epicycle is:
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a `circle within a circle', used to explain the retrograde motion of the planets in the geocentric model of the Universe.
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Microwaves are:
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radio waves.
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What property of an astronaut remains constant, whether they are on the Earth, on the Moon, or in orbit around the Earth?
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mass
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A low density cloud of gas (such as a HII region) produces:
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an emission-line spectrum.
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The speed of light is:
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a constant for all wavelengths in a vacuum, but it slows down in glass, air, or water.
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Star A has a surface temperature two times larger than that of Star B. Therefore, the wavelength of the peak of the spectrum of Star A is:
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1/2 that of Star B.
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Atom A has 2 protons, 2 electrons, and 2 neutrons. Atom B has 2 protons, 2 electrons, and 1 neutron. Therefore:
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Atom A has a mass approximately 4/3 times larger than Atom B.
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Kirchoff's Laws describe:
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what situation produces which kind of spectrum.
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A star like the Sun produces:
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An absorption-line spectrum.
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In what kind of telescope is the detector (and sometimes the Astronomer) placed in front of the primary mirror, blocking some of the incoming light?
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A Prime Focus telescope.
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An ion is:
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An atom which has lost an electron.
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Bob has a mass of M1, and Pete has a mass of M2. Bob's distance from the center of mass of the Bob/Pete system is X1, while Pete's distance from the center of mass is X2. The equation that relates these four quantities is:
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M1X1 = M2X2.
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The change in the observed wavelength of light due to the relative motion of the observer and the source of light is called:
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Doppler shift.
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A watt is:
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a joule/sec.
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As a planet orbits around a star in an elliptical orbit, which of the following remains a constant?
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the total energy.
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From laboratory measurements, we know that the H-beta spectral line of hydrogen appears at a wavelength of 486 nm. The spectrum of a particular star shows this line appearing at a wavelength of 485 nm. What can we conclude?
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The star is moving towards us.
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An ordinary light bulb produces which kind of spectrum?
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A continuous spectrum.
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A Hertz is:
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a cycle/sec (wavelength/sec).
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The thermal spectrum of a human being peaks in the:
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infrared.
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Asteroids:
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Are likely left-over planetesimals.
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What type of light travels easily through our atmosphere, so ground-based astronomy is possible at these wavelengths?
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Visible and radio.
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What are extrasolar planets?
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Planets orbiting other stars besides the Sun.
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Which planet orbits the Sun in a direction opposite that of the rest of the planets?
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None.
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How many moons are larger than Mercury?
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2
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Which objects have densities between 4 and 5.5 g/cm3?
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The terrestrial planets.
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The planet Mercury has been visited by:
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Just Mariner 10.
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Spirit and Opportunity are:
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Rovers on Mars
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The atmosphere of Jupiter is mostly:
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Hydrogen and helium.
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The atmospheric pressure on Venus is:
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about 90 times that on Earth.
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N2 is the most common molecule in the atmosphere of:
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Earth.
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Compared to the 100 meter Green Bank radio telescope, the Arecibo 300 meter radio telescope has a light gathering power:
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nine times larger
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What moon was probably not formed with its planet, but formed elsewhere and gravitationally captured?
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Triton.
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The Oort cloud is:
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a vast reservoir of comet nuclei orbiting the Sun at a distance of about 1 light year.
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According to the August 2006 definitions voted on by the IAU, the difference between a `planet' and a `dwarf planet' is:
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A dwarf planet does not clear the neighborhood around its orbit.
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Titan is:
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the moon with the thickest atmosphere
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How many moons does Mars have?
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2.
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The extrasolar planets discovered to date are:
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more massive than the Earth.
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It is presently possible to measure the diameter of an extrasolar planet in a few special cases. How is this done?
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timing it as it transits (eclipses) its star.
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The CO2, H2O, and CH4 in our atmosphere are:
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the molecules mainly responsible for absorbing IR from the Sun and Earth.
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What is the evidence that the upper part of the mantle of the Earth is not completely liquid?
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Both P and S waves travel through it.
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X-rays from the Sun are mainly absorbed in which layer of the Earth's atmosphere?
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Ionosphere.
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Infrared light from the Sun and the Earth are mainly absorbed in which layer of the Earth's atmosphere?
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Troposphere
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The unstable isotope uranium-235 will spontaneously decay to lead-207, with a half-life of 700 million years. This means that in a time of 1.4 billion years:
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3/4ths of the original uranium-235 will have decayed
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What is the evidence that the outer core of the Earth is liquid?
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Only P waves travel through it.
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Most of the solar wind:
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is deflected and trapped by the Earth's magnetic field lines.
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The magnetic field of the Earth is caused by:
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A magnetic dynamo caused by the motion of charged particles in the liquid outer core.
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Regions where two continental plates are colliding, and one gets pulled under the surface, are called:
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Subduction zones.
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The reason the core of the Earth is very iron-rich is:
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differentiation in the young molten Earth.
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The rocks on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean:
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increase in age with increasing distance from the Mid-Atlantic Ridge.
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The magnetic field of the Earth is the primary protection for life on Earth from:
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charged particles from the Sun.
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The atmosphere of Mercury is mainly due to:
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bombardment of its surface by the solar wind.
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The Coriolis Force (Coriolis Effect) is:
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a consequence of Newton's Laws applied to a rotating frame of reference.
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With a small telescope, `stripes' are visible on Jupiter. These are due to:
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circulation patterns in the atmosphere caused by convection, the rotation of the planet, and the Coriolis effect.
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The Van Allen Belts are:
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the magnetic field lines of Earth, where solar wind particles are trapped.
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The deep sea trench off the western coast of South America is an example of:
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a subduction zone.
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Shepherd moons are moons that:
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orbit near a ring, keeping the ring sharp and narrow.
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Which of the following moons has the most impact craters?
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Callisto.
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Neptune looks blue because:
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Its atmosphere contains some CH4.
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The rovers currently operating on the surface of Mars:
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Use stereovision to estimate distances.
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The maria on the Moon were formed by:
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impacts with planetesimals, which cracked the surface and caused lava to flow.
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The name of the large, long-lived storm in the atmosphere of Jupiter that was seen by both Galileo the scientist and Galileo the spacecraft is:
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the Great Red Spot.
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The interior of Saturn is:
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mostly liquid hydrogen, some in a `metallic' state, and a rocky core.
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The maria on the Moon are:
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large-scale lava flows from asteroid impacts breaking the crust.
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The Magellan spacecraft found the following features on the surface of Venus:
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large (probably) extinct volcanos and large-scale hardened lava flows.
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Which of the following statements about Neptune are true?
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It has a larger abundance of methane in its atmosphere than Jupiter.
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Saturn is mostly made of:
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hydrogen and helium.
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The channels called `rilles' seen on the surface of the Moon were caused by:
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past streams of molten lava.
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What is the most obvious difference between the near side and the far side of the Moon?
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The far side has more craters than the near side.
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Where is Caloris Basin?
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Mercury.
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The Messenger spacecraft:
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Is on its way to Mercury now.
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What causes the gap in the rings of Saturn known as the Cassini Division?
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The gravitational effect of Mimas.
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Which moon is sometimes called the `pizza pie moon', since it is covered with large-scale lava flows, active volcanos, and sulfur dioxide frost?
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Io.
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The largest mountain in the solar system is:
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Olympus Mons.
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