CSET Multiple Subjects Subtest 2 -
Science Questions & Answers72
Planets - ANSWERS--Divided into two main types: large, low-density gas giants and smaller,
rocky terrestrials
-There are at least 341 identified planets, 8 of which are in the Solar System
Solar System - ANSWERS--4 terrestrials: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Earth
-4 gas giants: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
-At least 5 dwarf planets: Ceres, Pluto, Makemake, Haumea, Eris
Venus - ANSWERS--Takes approx. seven and a half earth months for Venus to revolve around the
sun
-Takes approx. eight earth months to rotate on its axis
-Therefore, a day on Venus is longer than a year
-Similar in size to Earth
-One of the few planets that rotate from east to west
-Similar in size to Earth
-Atmosphere is primarily composed of carbon dioxide
-This thick atmosphere traps heat due to the greenhouse effect
-The Magellan probe reached Venus in 1990 and provided detailed images of the planet
Comet - ANSWERS--A small Solar System body that orbits the Sun
-When close enough to the sun, exhibits a visible coma (atmosphere) or a tail, both primarily
from the effects of solar radiation upon the comet's nucleus
,-Comet nuclei are loose collections of ice, dust, and small rocky particles, measuring a few
kilometers or tens of kilometers across
-Have a variety of different orbital periods, ranging from a few years, to hundreds of thousands
of years, while some are believed to pass through the inner Solar System only once before being
thrown out into interstellar space
Short-period comets - ANSWERS-Thought to originate in the Kuiper Belt, or associated scattered
discs, which lie beyond the orbit of Neptune
Long-period comets - ANSWERS--Believed to originate at a much greater distance from the Sun,
in a cloud (the Oort cloud) consisting of debris left over from the condensation of solar nebula
-Comets are thrown from the outer planets or nearby stars, or as a result of collisions
Asteroids - ANSWERS--Sometimes called minor planets or planetoids
-Bodies—primarily of the inner Solar System—that are smaller than planets but larger than
meteoroids, excluding comets
-The distinction between asteroids and comets is made by visual appearance; when discovered,
comets show a perceptible coma while asteroids do not
Earth - ANSWERS--Travels in an orbit that is slightly elliptical (oval), and so the distance from the
sun ranges from 91.5 to 94.5 million miles
-Its daily rotation deforms the earth to a flattened spheroid, with a polar radius slightly less than
the equatorial radius
Locations of the surface are described by a grid of latitude and longitude lines
Gravity and inertia - ANSWERS--Both gravity and inertia work together to keep planets in orbit
around the sun
-Inertia makes a planet travel in a straight line
-By definition, inertia is the tendency of a moving object to stay in a straight line or a stationary
object to remain in place
,-However, the power of the sun's gravity pulls the planets toward the sun
-The sun's gravity pulls the planets while their inertia keeps them moving forward in an elliptical
orbit around the sun
-The strength of gravity in our solar system depends on both the masses of the celestial objects
and the distance between them
-Gravity helps to explain the tides on earth
-Without inertia, a planet would be pulled into the sun
Weight and mass - ANSWERS--Gas giants Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune have diameters
far larger than Earth's and have far greater masses
-An individual weighing 200 lbs on Earth would weigh more on a larger planet
-Weight is a function of gravity
Latitude - ANSWERS-The degrees north or south of the equator
Longitude - ANSWERS-The degrees east or west of the prime meridian through Greenwich,
England
Moon - ANSWERS--Travels around the earth each month
-Distance from the earth averages 237,000 miles
-Has rugged topography formed billions of years ago by volcanic eruptions and meteorite
impacts
-Mass is 1/6th that of Earth
Phases of the moon - ANSWERS--New moon occurs when the moon sets at sunset
-Then the moon is between the earth and the sun, so we see only the dark half of the moon
-Each night, the moon sets a few minutes later and we perceive more of its illuminated half
-After the moon has waxed through crescent, quarter, and gibbous phases, a full moon appears
, -At that time, the moon rises at sunset, and we see all of its illuminated side
-Then the phase wanes gradually to another new moon
-There are approx. 29.5 days between each cycle
Eclipses - ANSWERS--Ancient astronomers found that eclipses occurred periodically and learned
to predict them accurately
-Lunar and solar
Lunar eclipse - ANSWERS--Darkens the moon as the earth passes between it and the sun,
casting a shadow on the moon
-An eclipse of the moon may be seen from anywhere the moon is visible, about half of the earth
Solar eclipse - ANSWERS--Takes place when the moon passes between the earth and the sun,
with the moon blocking the sunlight for about two minutes
-A total eclipse of the sun may be seen only from a small zone on the earth
Sun - ANSWERS--A huge ball of incandescent gases
-Its mass is more than 300,000 times that of the earth
-Principal constituents of the sun are the lightest elements, hydrogen and helium
-Under solar conditions, those gases are undergoing nuclear fusion to heavier elements with the
increase of prodigious quantities of energy
-The center of the sun may have a temperature of millions of degrees; the visible surface, the
photosphere, is about 6000°C
-Sunspots are somewhat cooler disturbances in the photosphere
-Atmosphere is divided into the inner chromosphere with explosive prominences and the outer
corona, a glowing halo visible only during a total eclipse
-Constantly emitting particles as a solar wind
Science Questions & Answers72
Planets - ANSWERS--Divided into two main types: large, low-density gas giants and smaller,
rocky terrestrials
-There are at least 341 identified planets, 8 of which are in the Solar System
Solar System - ANSWERS--4 terrestrials: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Earth
-4 gas giants: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune
-At least 5 dwarf planets: Ceres, Pluto, Makemake, Haumea, Eris
Venus - ANSWERS--Takes approx. seven and a half earth months for Venus to revolve around the
sun
-Takes approx. eight earth months to rotate on its axis
-Therefore, a day on Venus is longer than a year
-Similar in size to Earth
-One of the few planets that rotate from east to west
-Similar in size to Earth
-Atmosphere is primarily composed of carbon dioxide
-This thick atmosphere traps heat due to the greenhouse effect
-The Magellan probe reached Venus in 1990 and provided detailed images of the planet
Comet - ANSWERS--A small Solar System body that orbits the Sun
-When close enough to the sun, exhibits a visible coma (atmosphere) or a tail, both primarily
from the effects of solar radiation upon the comet's nucleus
,-Comet nuclei are loose collections of ice, dust, and small rocky particles, measuring a few
kilometers or tens of kilometers across
-Have a variety of different orbital periods, ranging from a few years, to hundreds of thousands
of years, while some are believed to pass through the inner Solar System only once before being
thrown out into interstellar space
Short-period comets - ANSWERS-Thought to originate in the Kuiper Belt, or associated scattered
discs, which lie beyond the orbit of Neptune
Long-period comets - ANSWERS--Believed to originate at a much greater distance from the Sun,
in a cloud (the Oort cloud) consisting of debris left over from the condensation of solar nebula
-Comets are thrown from the outer planets or nearby stars, or as a result of collisions
Asteroids - ANSWERS--Sometimes called minor planets or planetoids
-Bodies—primarily of the inner Solar System—that are smaller than planets but larger than
meteoroids, excluding comets
-The distinction between asteroids and comets is made by visual appearance; when discovered,
comets show a perceptible coma while asteroids do not
Earth - ANSWERS--Travels in an orbit that is slightly elliptical (oval), and so the distance from the
sun ranges from 91.5 to 94.5 million miles
-Its daily rotation deforms the earth to a flattened spheroid, with a polar radius slightly less than
the equatorial radius
Locations of the surface are described by a grid of latitude and longitude lines
Gravity and inertia - ANSWERS--Both gravity and inertia work together to keep planets in orbit
around the sun
-Inertia makes a planet travel in a straight line
-By definition, inertia is the tendency of a moving object to stay in a straight line or a stationary
object to remain in place
,-However, the power of the sun's gravity pulls the planets toward the sun
-The sun's gravity pulls the planets while their inertia keeps them moving forward in an elliptical
orbit around the sun
-The strength of gravity in our solar system depends on both the masses of the celestial objects
and the distance between them
-Gravity helps to explain the tides on earth
-Without inertia, a planet would be pulled into the sun
Weight and mass - ANSWERS--Gas giants Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune have diameters
far larger than Earth's and have far greater masses
-An individual weighing 200 lbs on Earth would weigh more on a larger planet
-Weight is a function of gravity
Latitude - ANSWERS-The degrees north or south of the equator
Longitude - ANSWERS-The degrees east or west of the prime meridian through Greenwich,
England
Moon - ANSWERS--Travels around the earth each month
-Distance from the earth averages 237,000 miles
-Has rugged topography formed billions of years ago by volcanic eruptions and meteorite
impacts
-Mass is 1/6th that of Earth
Phases of the moon - ANSWERS--New moon occurs when the moon sets at sunset
-Then the moon is between the earth and the sun, so we see only the dark half of the moon
-Each night, the moon sets a few minutes later and we perceive more of its illuminated half
-After the moon has waxed through crescent, quarter, and gibbous phases, a full moon appears
, -At that time, the moon rises at sunset, and we see all of its illuminated side
-Then the phase wanes gradually to another new moon
-There are approx. 29.5 days between each cycle
Eclipses - ANSWERS--Ancient astronomers found that eclipses occurred periodically and learned
to predict them accurately
-Lunar and solar
Lunar eclipse - ANSWERS--Darkens the moon as the earth passes between it and the sun,
casting a shadow on the moon
-An eclipse of the moon may be seen from anywhere the moon is visible, about half of the earth
Solar eclipse - ANSWERS--Takes place when the moon passes between the earth and the sun,
with the moon blocking the sunlight for about two minutes
-A total eclipse of the sun may be seen only from a small zone on the earth
Sun - ANSWERS--A huge ball of incandescent gases
-Its mass is more than 300,000 times that of the earth
-Principal constituents of the sun are the lightest elements, hydrogen and helium
-Under solar conditions, those gases are undergoing nuclear fusion to heavier elements with the
increase of prodigious quantities of energy
-The center of the sun may have a temperature of millions of degrees; the visible surface, the
photosphere, is about 6000°C
-Sunspots are somewhat cooler disturbances in the photosphere
-Atmosphere is divided into the inner chromosphere with explosive prominences and the outer
corona, a glowing halo visible only during a total eclipse
-Constantly emitting particles as a solar wind
