ASTR 1010-Exam 2 Test Questions
with Guaranteed Pass Solutions 2025-
2026 Version.
How the Solar System Was Formed? - Answer step 1-the birth of our solar system began as
dust and gases (nebula) started to gravitationally collapse
step 2-the nebula contracted into a rotating disk that was heated by the conversion of
gravitational energy into thermal energy
step 3-cooling of the nebular cloud caused rocky and metallic material to condense into tiny
solid particles
step 4-repeated collisions caused the dust-sized particles to gradually coalesce into astroid-sized
bodies
step 5-
The steps in which the large, outer planets formed were - Answer Accretion of planetesimals
to form a core, followed by gravitational capture of hydrogen and helium gas.
The formation of terrestrial-type of planets around a star is most likely to have occurred by what
process? - Answer Accretion, or slow accumulation, of smaller particles by mutual
gravitational attraction.
The core - Answer The core is approximately 20% of the size of the solar interior and is
thought to have a temperature of approximately 15 million K, making it the hottest part of the
Sun.
the radiative zone - Answer named for the primary mode of transporting energy across it. This
region starts at about 25% of the distance to the solar surface and extends up to about 70% of
the way to the surface. The light generated in the core is transported through the radiative zone
very slowly, since the high density of matter in this region means a photon cannot travel too far
without encountering a particle, causing it to change direction and lose some energy.
, where it loses its heat to space. Once the plasma cools, it sinks back to the bottom of the
convective zone.
the photosphere - Answer the layer where the Sun becomes opaque and marks the boundary
past which we cannot see
aurora - Answer light radiated by atoms and ions in the ionosphere excited by charged
particles from the Sun, mostly seen in the magnetic polar regions
chromosphere - Answer the part of the solar atmosphere that lies immediately above the
photospheric layers
corona - Answer (of the Sun) the outer (hot) atmosphere of the Sun
coronal hole - Answer a region in the Sun's outer atmosphere that appears darker because
there is less hot gas there
granulation - Answer the rice-grain-like structure of the solar photosphere; granulation is
produced by upwelling currents of gas that are slightly hotter, and therefore brighter, than the
surrounding regions, which are flowing downward into the Sun
photosphere - Answer the region of the solar (or stellar) atmosphere from which continuous
radiation escapes into space
plasma - Answer a hot ionized gas
solar wind - Answer a flow of hot, charged particles leaving the Sun
transition region - Answer the region in the Sun's atmosphere where the temperature rises
very rapidly from the relatively low temperatures that characterize the chromosphere to the
high temperatures of the corona
differential rotation - Answer the phenomenon that occurs when different parts of a rotating
object rotate at different rates at different latitudes
with Guaranteed Pass Solutions 2025-
2026 Version.
How the Solar System Was Formed? - Answer step 1-the birth of our solar system began as
dust and gases (nebula) started to gravitationally collapse
step 2-the nebula contracted into a rotating disk that was heated by the conversion of
gravitational energy into thermal energy
step 3-cooling of the nebular cloud caused rocky and metallic material to condense into tiny
solid particles
step 4-repeated collisions caused the dust-sized particles to gradually coalesce into astroid-sized
bodies
step 5-
The steps in which the large, outer planets formed were - Answer Accretion of planetesimals
to form a core, followed by gravitational capture of hydrogen and helium gas.
The formation of terrestrial-type of planets around a star is most likely to have occurred by what
process? - Answer Accretion, or slow accumulation, of smaller particles by mutual
gravitational attraction.
The core - Answer The core is approximately 20% of the size of the solar interior and is
thought to have a temperature of approximately 15 million K, making it the hottest part of the
Sun.
the radiative zone - Answer named for the primary mode of transporting energy across it. This
region starts at about 25% of the distance to the solar surface and extends up to about 70% of
the way to the surface. The light generated in the core is transported through the radiative zone
very slowly, since the high density of matter in this region means a photon cannot travel too far
without encountering a particle, causing it to change direction and lose some energy.
, where it loses its heat to space. Once the plasma cools, it sinks back to the bottom of the
convective zone.
the photosphere - Answer the layer where the Sun becomes opaque and marks the boundary
past which we cannot see
aurora - Answer light radiated by atoms and ions in the ionosphere excited by charged
particles from the Sun, mostly seen in the magnetic polar regions
chromosphere - Answer the part of the solar atmosphere that lies immediately above the
photospheric layers
corona - Answer (of the Sun) the outer (hot) atmosphere of the Sun
coronal hole - Answer a region in the Sun's outer atmosphere that appears darker because
there is less hot gas there
granulation - Answer the rice-grain-like structure of the solar photosphere; granulation is
produced by upwelling currents of gas that are slightly hotter, and therefore brighter, than the
surrounding regions, which are flowing downward into the Sun
photosphere - Answer the region of the solar (or stellar) atmosphere from which continuous
radiation escapes into space
plasma - Answer a hot ionized gas
solar wind - Answer a flow of hot, charged particles leaving the Sun
transition region - Answer the region in the Sun's atmosphere where the temperature rises
very rapidly from the relatively low temperatures that characterize the chromosphere to the
high temperatures of the corona
differential rotation - Answer the phenomenon that occurs when different parts of a rotating
object rotate at different rates at different latitudes
