Download Introduction to the EarthESci 100Dr. Albanese, Tuesdays and

Introduction to the Earth
ESci 100
Dr. Albanese, Tuesdays and Thursdays at 10:00
Sample Questions for the Final Exam
These questions serve as an example of the types and style of the questions that will be found on
the exam. The questions on the actual exam will cover similar material and may be worded
differently. The answers for these questions may be found in your lecture notes and/or in the text.
This exam includes material from lectures 21 to 25 and Chapters 21 to 24 in Earth Science,
Tarbuck and Lutgens, 12th edition.
Part 1. True (A)/False (B)
1. The ancient Greeks proposed a heliocentric view of the earth.
2. The ancient Greeks believed that the earth was flat.
3. The earth is closest to the sun in July.
4. The planets maintain circular orbits around the sun.
5. When the earth is the farthest from the sun it is said to be in the perihelion position.
6. The angular distance north and south of the celestial equator is called right ascension.
7. Patterns or configurations of stars named in honor of mythological characters are called
perturbations.
8. The distance from the earth to the sun is used to measure distances in the solar system and is
called a light year.
9. The sun's energy results from the conversion of hydrogen nuclei into helium nuclei.
10. The length of daylight on the moon is about one month.
11. Most of the moon’s craters are volcanic in origin.
12. Galileo built the first known telescope.
13. Although current technology will allow the construction of much larger optical telescopes,
astronomers see no advantage in building these larger instruments.
14. The large size of some of the volcanoes on Mars is due to an earlier period of plate tectonics.
15. Comets are not part of our solar system, but rather interstellar objects which occasionally
pass by the sun.
16. The high surface temperature of Venus is caused largely by the presence of ammonia.
17. The larger the magnitude number, the brighter will be the star.
18. The red shift refers to the tendency of stars to cool and become red in color.
19. Using stellar parallax, astronomers are able to determine the distance to even the most distant
stars.
20. Red giants are considerably more massive than blue main-sequence stars.
21. The most massive main-sequence stars are red in color.
22. The Milky Way is classified as an elliptical galaxy.
23. More than 20 years passed between the first manned space flight and landing on the moon.
24. Liquid water is common in this solar system.
25. A light year is longer than a parsec.
Part 1B - Multiple Choice
26. One of the discoveries which led to the modern view of the solar system was that the orbits
of the planets are:
a. circles
c. hyperbolas
e. ovals
b. ellipses
d. parabolas
27. This scientist determined the nature of the forces that kept the planets in their orbits.
a. Sir Isaac Newton
c. Tycho Brahe
e. Johannes Kepler
b. Galileo
d. Nicholas Copernicus
28. The three laws of planetary motion were discovered by:
a. Sir Isaac Newton
c. Tycho Brahe
e. Johannes Kepler
b. Galileo
d. Nicholas Copernicus
29. The apparent westward drift of the planets as compared to the back- ground stars is called:
a. Ptolemaic motion
c. precession
e. retrograde motion
b. occultation
d. perturbation
30. Any variance in the orbit of a planet from its predicted path is referred to as:
a. Ptolemaic motion
c. precession
e. retrograde motion
b. occultation
d. perturbation
31. A very slow motion of the earth's axis which requires 26,000 years to complete is called:
a. Ptolemaic motion
c. precession
e. retrograde motion
b. occultation
d. perturbation
32. The layer of the sun which radiates most of the light that reaches the earth is called the:
a. ionosphere
c. photosphere
e. megasphere
b. corona
d. chromosphere
33. The source of the sun's energy is:
a. chemical burning
c. nuclear fusion
e. potential energy
b. nuclear fission
d. heat of contraction
34. When viewed from earth, the dark-appearing areas on the moon are called:
a. oceanus
c. maria
e. none of these
b. lunar highlands
d. rays
35. The length of daylight on the moon is about:
a. 24 hours
b. 2 days
c. 2 weeks
d. a month
e. 1 year
36. Streams of protons and electrons emitted from the sun produce(s):
a. quasars
c. granules
e. prominences
b. the solar wind
d. plages
37. To determine whether a celestial body is approaching or receding from the earth, astronomers
employ:
a. the Stefan-Baltzmann law
c. the Doppler principle
e. telescopic imaging
b. Einstein's equation
d. high speed radar
38. Because lenses act like a prism to separate the colors of the spectrum, they produce a
troublesome effect known as:
a. focal distortion
c. chromatic aberration
e. light dispersion
b. the atmospheric effect
d. poor seeing
39. The formation of the solar system from a huge cloud of dust and gases is called the:
a. protoplanet hypothesis
c. solar hypothesis
b. planetesimal hypothesis
d. nebular hypothesis
e. none of these
40. Which of these is NOT a characteristic of the Jovian planets?
a. large size
b. composed mostly of gases and ices
c. located beyond the orbit of Mars
d. have thin atmospheres
e. all of these are characteristics
41. This planet shows evidence of water erosion:
a. Venus
b. Uranus
c. Mars
d. Mercury
e. Pluto
42. This planet has a densely cratered surface similar to that of the moon:
a. Venus
b. Uranus
c. Mars
d. Mercury
e. Pluto
43. These minor members of the solar system are thought to have formed beyond the orbit
of Pluto:
a. comets
c. satellites
e. meteorites
b. asteroids
d. meteoroids
44. The small particles which produce a streak of light upon entering the earth's
atmosphere are called:
a. comets
c. satellites
e. meteorites
b. asteroids
d. meteoroids
45. Stellar distances are usually expressed in units called:
a. miles
c. kilometers
e. both b and d
b. parsecs
d. light years
46. The measure of a star's brightness is called its:
a. parallax
c. visual binary
e. intensity
b. color index
d. magnitude
47. The distance to stars can be determined from:
a. fluorescence
c. stellar mass directly
d. emission nebulae
b. stellar parallax
e. stellar distances cannot be measured
48. Which color stars have the highest surface temperature?
a. red
b. orange
c. yellow
d. white
e. blue
49. The sun belongs to this class of stars:
a. black hole
c. main-sequence star
e. white dwarf
b. black dwarf
d. red giant
50. Based on the observed red shifts in the spectral lines of distant galaxies, astronomers
conclude that:
a. the earth is in the center of the universe
b. the universe is contracting
c. the universe is expanding
d. the universe is in a steady state
e. new galaxies are continually being added to the universe