ISP 205 EXAM 2 UPDATED ACTUAL QUESTIONS AND
CORRECT ANSWERS (2)
Question:
Describe the major patterns we find among objects
orbiting the Sun.
Answer:
-Terrestrial planets: rocky planets
-Jovian Planets: gaseous planets
-Asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter
-Kuiper belt past Neptune full of ice balls and comets
-Dwarf planets orbit past Neptune
-All rotate counterclockwise
Question:
Predict how the temperature of an opaque gas cloud will
change as the cloud shrinks
Answer:
As it shrinks its temperature will increase (conservation of energy)
Question:
Explain how the nebular theory accounts for the
dependence of planetary composition on distance from
the Sun
Answer:
-As the cloud forms disks when it spins, inner disks (within the frostline) are hotter
than the outer
-Rocks are solidified at higher temperatures than ice
-Inside the frost line it's too hot for hydrogen to form ice
-Outside frost line it's cold enough for ice to form
Question:
Distinguish between terrestrial planets, jovian planets,
and dwarf planets.
Answer:
-Terrestrial planets: rocky planets (C, O, Si, Fe), few moons
-Jovian Planets: gaseous planets (H, He, hydrogen compounds), many moons
-Dwarf Planets: large dirty balls of ice
Question:
Identify the major bodies of the solar system from their
characteristics.
Answer:
-Sun: 99.8% of mass in SS
-Mercury: hot rock
-Venus: cloudy, thick atmosphere, very hot
, -Earth: watery "double planet"
-Mars: frozen rocky planet with possible ice
-Jupiter: gaseous planet
-Saturn: gaseous with rings
-Uranus: tilted sideways, gaseous
-Neptune: same size a Neptune, rings, gaseous
-Pluto: dirty ball of ice, moon is same size
-Comets: far end of solar system, elongated orbits
Question:
Describe the nebular theory for solar system formation.
Answer:
-Gravity pulls cloud of gas in, making it heat up and spin faster (conservation of
energy and angular momentum)
-Cloud flattens into a rotating disk as it speeds up
-Objects form in disk (planets and asteroids and comets)
-Tiny particles stick together forming planetesimals
-Accretion draws planetesimals together forming planets
-All objects rotate in the same direction and form based on location (terrestrial
and Jovian)
Question:
Explain how the nebular theory accounts for the motions
of planets and their moons.
Answer:
They all rotate in the same direction (counterclockwise) because of the spinning
disk of particles that formed them
Question:
Predict how the locations of terrestrial and jovian planets
would change if the temperature of the solar nebula had
been different.
Answer:
-If it was warmer, there would be more terrestrial planets because rock could
form
-Colder temps mean more Jovian planets because ice can form
Question:
Explain how the nebular theory accounts for the
existence of asteroids and comets
Answer:
Solar wind blows all excess gas into space and they form from leftover
planetesimals that remain
Question:
CORRECT ANSWERS (2)
Question:
Describe the major patterns we find among objects
orbiting the Sun.
Answer:
-Terrestrial planets: rocky planets
-Jovian Planets: gaseous planets
-Asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter
-Kuiper belt past Neptune full of ice balls and comets
-Dwarf planets orbit past Neptune
-All rotate counterclockwise
Question:
Predict how the temperature of an opaque gas cloud will
change as the cloud shrinks
Answer:
As it shrinks its temperature will increase (conservation of energy)
Question:
Explain how the nebular theory accounts for the
dependence of planetary composition on distance from
the Sun
Answer:
-As the cloud forms disks when it spins, inner disks (within the frostline) are hotter
than the outer
-Rocks are solidified at higher temperatures than ice
-Inside the frost line it's too hot for hydrogen to form ice
-Outside frost line it's cold enough for ice to form
Question:
Distinguish between terrestrial planets, jovian planets,
and dwarf planets.
Answer:
-Terrestrial planets: rocky planets (C, O, Si, Fe), few moons
-Jovian Planets: gaseous planets (H, He, hydrogen compounds), many moons
-Dwarf Planets: large dirty balls of ice
Question:
Identify the major bodies of the solar system from their
characteristics.
Answer:
-Sun: 99.8% of mass in SS
-Mercury: hot rock
-Venus: cloudy, thick atmosphere, very hot
, -Earth: watery "double planet"
-Mars: frozen rocky planet with possible ice
-Jupiter: gaseous planet
-Saturn: gaseous with rings
-Uranus: tilted sideways, gaseous
-Neptune: same size a Neptune, rings, gaseous
-Pluto: dirty ball of ice, moon is same size
-Comets: far end of solar system, elongated orbits
Question:
Describe the nebular theory for solar system formation.
Answer:
-Gravity pulls cloud of gas in, making it heat up and spin faster (conservation of
energy and angular momentum)
-Cloud flattens into a rotating disk as it speeds up
-Objects form in disk (planets and asteroids and comets)
-Tiny particles stick together forming planetesimals
-Accretion draws planetesimals together forming planets
-All objects rotate in the same direction and form based on location (terrestrial
and Jovian)
Question:
Explain how the nebular theory accounts for the motions
of planets and their moons.
Answer:
They all rotate in the same direction (counterclockwise) because of the spinning
disk of particles that formed them
Question:
Predict how the locations of terrestrial and jovian planets
would change if the temperature of the solar nebula had
been different.
Answer:
-If it was warmer, there would be more terrestrial planets because rock could
form
-Colder temps mean more Jovian planets because ice can form
Question:
Explain how the nebular theory accounts for the
existence of asteroids and comets
Answer:
Solar wind blows all excess gas into space and they form from leftover
planetesimals that remain
Question:
