West Los Angeles College Astronomy Questionnaire

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Unit 6 Homework

1. How many planets are there in the solar system (don’t count dwarf planets)?

a. 8 b. 9 c. 12 d. 13

2. What is the most abundant (non-observable) material in our galaxy?

3. What are the two most abundant elements of the universe? (choose all that apply)

a. hydrogen b. helium c. carbon d. iron e. oxygen

4. What object (or objects) is (are) the second most massive component of the Solar System?

5. What are Dwarf Planets also known as?

6. Type in at least four differences between the planets (I did one for you. You do four more. Use the text and my presentations to help you answer this question).

7. What were planets typically named after?

8. Where are the asteroids found? What is the shape of their orbits?

9. Where are the comets found? What is the shape of their orbits?

10. Which of the two objects (asteroids or comets) is mostly made of rock?

11. Which (asteroids or comets) is mostly made of ice?

12. What is the main thing that differentiates meteors and meteorites?

a. size b. location c. shape

13. What are meteor showers named after?

14. What were the main stages of the solar system formation theory? (List with a brief explanation of each)

15. What are the main methods of detecting exoplanets? (List them and briefly describe them)

Define the following terms:

• Solar system –

• Asteroid –

• Comet –

• Ion tail –

• Dust tail –

• Exoplanet –

• Meteor –

• Meteorite –

• Meteoroid –

Use the planetary data grid to answer the following 7 questions:

16. List the 5 terrestrial worlds (include the moon) in order from smallest to largest.

17. Which of the inner planets gets the HOTTEST?

a. Mercury b. Venus c. Earth d. Mars

18. Which planet is most like the Earth in size?

a. Mercury b. Venus

19. Which planet has nearly the same length Day as Earth?

a. Mercury b. Venus c. Mars d. Jupiter

20. Which planet will celebrate only ONE year in the same amount of time the average human lives their ENTIRE life? a. Mercury b. Venus c. Mars d. Jupiter e. Saturnf. Uranusg. Neptune

21. What pattern do you notice about average distance from the Sun, and length of year?

A. longer year B. shorter year C. no pattern

22. What pattern do you notice about size of planet and length of day?

A. longer dayB. shorter day C. no pattern

Short Answer / Essay Questions:

[The answer must include all relevant information, yet notinclude a lot of non-relevant information for full credit. Even though you will be referencing various resources, you need to compose your answer primarily in your own words. A completely (or heavily) copied response will also result in a deduction of points. A good rule of thumb would be to attempt to explain the question to a peer who has not taken your astronomy class.]

Answer in AT LEAST 5-7 complete sentences for full credit.

23. Contrast the formation of the atmospheres between the inner and outer planets. Make sure to include identifying features of each for full credit.

24. What is a NEO, and why should we be concerned about them?Fully define a NEO, processes, and consequences for full credit.

25. What are the differences between the two tails of a comet? Describe the differences and why there are differences.