1. The high temperature on the surface of Venus is caused by A. tidal forces generated by its small but dense moon. B. the extreme radioactivity of its atmosphere. C. trapping of solar energy by the carbon dioxide in its atmosphere. D. direct heating by its intense volcanic activity. 2. The density differences between comets and asteroids can be accounted for in terms of where these objects formed. A. False B. True 3. The Doppler shift can only measure the radial velocity of objects (toward or away from us) - not the transverse velocity of objects across the sky. A. True B. False 4. Number the following from 1 to 5 in order of increasing distance from the Sun (1 is closest): A. Neptune B. Kuiper Belt C. Oort Cloud D. Asteroid Belt E. Jupiter 5. The close up images of asteroids taken by the Galileo probe on its journey to Jupiter revealed that these asteroids had A. cratered surfaces. B. spherical shapes. C. volcanic activity. D. atmospheres. 6. Which of the following objects is Pluto most like? A. Jovian planets B. Terrestrial planets C. Cratered asteroids between Mars and Jupiter D. Kuiper belt objects beyond the orbit of Neptune 7. In a few thousand years, the Earth's axis of rotation will not be pointing towards the star Polaris. This is because A. the Earth's axis is precessing (wobbling) B. the size of the equatorial bulge is increasing C. the solar system will be on the other side of the Galaxy. D. the rotation of the Earth is slowing down 8. The reason there are two main types of planets is that A. the Sun's heat prevented ices and gases from condensing near it. B. the Sun's gravity drew iron and silicate chunks close to it as the planets formed. C. the Sun's strong magnetic field repelled all the hydrogen and helium to the outer parts of the solar system. D. the Sun's strong magnetic field attracted all the hydrogen and helium to the inner parts of the solar system. 9. Lunar eclipses are observed to last about 2-3 hours, while solar eclipses are observed to last about 2-3 minutes. The reason is A. Earth's shadow is larger than the Moon, but the Moon's shadow is smaller than the Earth. B. Moon moves much slower at new phase than at full phase. C. Sun is very much larger than the Moon. D. Moon moves much faster at new phase than at full phase. 10. Comets are A. the remnants of a huge terrestrial planet broken up by an explosion. B. material captured from a passing star. C. escaped satellites of the inner planets, especially Mercury and Venus. D. small icy bodies which drop into the inner Solar System and are heated by the Sun. 11. The numerous craters that we see on solid surfaces of most bodies in the solar system are evidence that A. water existed early on these bodies, but vaporized and left behind hollow pockets on these surfaces. B. the Sun was so hot early in the history of the solar system that craters formed as boiling material rushed to the surface and cooled rapidly. C. these bodies were hot and experienced tremendous volcanic activity leaving behind craters. D. the solar system experienced a period of heavy bombardment by leftover debris early in its history. 12. The fact that some asteroids are rocky while others are metallic (iron-rich) is explained by A. The statement is false. Asteroids are essentially all alike in their composition. B. the Sun heating their surfaces and vaporizing the rock from some of them. C. their forming near Jupiter, whose immense gravity drew the iron outward. D. their being fragments of larger objects that had melted and formed iron cores through differentiation. 13. Astronomers use the Doppler effect to measure A. the proper motion of the center of mass of the planet-star system. B. a shift in the light of the star as it orbits the center of mass of the planet-star system. C. a shift in the light of the planet as it orbits the star. D. the recessional velocity of the center of mass of the planet-star system. 14. By observing the light emitted by a star, we can infer its composition from A. how bright the star is together with its color. B. Wien's law C. the Doppler effect D. the lines in the star's spectrum 15. Planets around other stars are difficult to detect because A. All these answers are correct. B. they are so faint compared to the star. C. their mass is so small it imparts only a small wobble in the position of the star on the sky. D. their mass is so small it imparts only a small Doppler wobble to the spectrum of the star. 16. The condensation sequence agrees with the observation of ammonia and methane ices found A. only within the inner portions of the solar system. B. on asteroids. C. in the Earth's polar regions. D. in comets and in the atmospheres and on the satellites of the giant planets. 17. The Kuiper belt refers to a group of objects orbiting A. nearly halfway to the next star. B. beyond Neptune's orbit. C. between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. D. just within Earth's orbit. 18. The flat shape of the Solar System results from A. intense magnetic field compression in the early solar system. B. a collision of the early solar system with another cloud that squashed it. C. the statement is false -- the system of planets is not flattened. D. rotation of the collapsing cloud from which it formed. 19. According to the dirty snowball model, comets A. none of the other answers. The dirty snowball model relates to asteroids, not comets. B. have a small solid nucleus from which the gases of the coma are derived. C. consist of various liquids, but mostly water. D. consist of a solid coma and gaseous tail(s). 20. Identify the CORRECT statement concerning a comet's gas (or ion) tail. A. Comet gas tails are directed towards the Sun because they are formed when material from the comet are ejected towards the Sun. B. Comet gas tails are directed away from the Sun because they form when the Sun's radiation pressure and the solar wind push on gases as they evaporate from the comet. C. Comet gas tails are directed towards the Sun because they form when the Sun's gravity pulls material from the comet towards it in a long plume. D. Comet gas tails are directed away from the Sun because the Sun's magnetic field repels the gases that evaporate from the comet. 21. The rings of Saturn have existed in their present state since the formation of the Solar System. A. True B. False 1. C. 2. B. 3. A. 4. 5. A. 6. D. 7. A. 8. A. 9. A. 10. D. 11. D. 12. D. 13. B. 14. D. 15. A. 16. D. 17. B. 18. D. 19. B. 20. B. 21. B.