AST 101 CHAPTER 10 EXAM QUESTIONS WITH CORRECT ANSWERS LATEST UPDATE 2026
Venus - Answers Which of the following worlds has the most substantial atmosphere?
Its average temperature would go up. - Answers What would happen to Earth's temperature if you
painted the entire surface of the Earth black?
Venus - Answers Which terrestrial world has the highest average surface temperature?
Venus - Answers Which terrestrial world has the greatest difference in temperature between its "no
greenhouse" temperature and its actual temperature?
It has a large amount of carbon dioxide in its atmosphere. - Answers Why does Venus have such a
great difference in temperature between its "no greenhouse" temperature and its actual
temperature?
Mercury - Answers Which terrestrial world experiences the greatest change between its daytime
temperature and night temperature?
gases that absorb infrared light - Answers What are greenhouse gases?
Greenhouse gases transmit visible light, allowing it to heat the surface, but then absorb infrared light
emitted by the surface, trapping the heat near the surface. - Answers How does the greenhouse
effect work?
CO2 and H2O - Answers Of the four gases CO2, H2O, N2, and O2, which are greenhouse gases?
below the freezing point of water - Answers What would Earth's average surface temperature be if it
had no greenhouse effect?
absorption of ultraviolet light by ozone - Answers Earth's stratosphere is heated primarily by which
process?
are absorbed in Earth's thermosphere. - Answers x-rays from the Sun's corona
thermosphere, troposphere, stratosphere, exosphere - Answers Which of the following lists the
layers of a generic planetary atmosphere in the correct order from lowest to highest altitude?
Its atmosphere does not contain enough of an ultraviolet-absorbing gas - Answers Why doesn't Mars
have a stratosphere?
Air molecules scatter blue light more effectively than red light. - Answers Why is the sky blue?
Temperature decreases with altitude in the troposphere, but this trend reverses in the stratosphere. -
Answers Why does convection occur in the troposphere, but not in the stratosphere?
Faster rotation rates produce stronger winds. - Answers How is the atmosphere of a planet affected
by the rotation rate?
a planet's size and rotation rate - Answers What most strongly affects the strength of a planet's
Coriolis effect?
surface ejection caused by micrometeorites and high-energy particles and photons. - Answers
Mercury's small amount of atmospheric gas comes from
There is water ice in craters near the poles. - Answers In what form does water exist on the Moon?
Atmospheric gases were left vulnerable to being stripped into space by solar wind particles. -
Answers How might Mars's weakened magnetic field have allowed for major changes in its climate?
yes, because Mars has a much weaker greenhouse effect than Earth - Answers Suppose that Mars
were located at the same distance from the Sun as Earth, but was otherwise the same. Would it still
be colder than Earth? Why or why not?
frozen in its polar caps and in subsurface ground ice - Answers Where is most of the water that Mars
has today?
Its surface rocks were rusted by oxygen. - Answers Why is Mars red?
Most of Earth's carbon dioxide dissolved in the oceans, where it became incorporated into carbonate
rocks. - Answers Why does Earth's atmosphere contain much less carbon dioxide than Venus's
atmosphere?
Venus has much more carbon dioxide in its atmosphere. - Answers Venus is much hotter than the
Earth. Which of the following explains most of this temperature difference?
It has sulfuric acid rain in its atmosphere, but the drops evaporate before hitting the surface. -
Answers Which of the following best describes rain on Venus?
It once had a substantial amount of water in its atmosphere. - Answers Deuterium is more abundant
on Venus than elsewhere in the solar system. What do we think this fact tells us about Venus?
More evaporation and rainfall would reduce the atmospheric CO2 levels, and the greenhouse effect
would weaken. - Answers Considering just the effects of the carbon dioxide cycle, if the Earth were to
warm up a bit, what would happen?
Venus - Answers Which of the following worlds has the most substantial atmosphere?
Its average temperature would go up. - Answers What would happen to Earth's temperature if you
painted the entire surface of the Earth black?
Venus - Answers Which terrestrial world has the highest average surface temperature?
Venus - Answers Which terrestrial world has the greatest difference in temperature between its "no
greenhouse" temperature and its actual temperature?
It has a large amount of carbon dioxide in its atmosphere. - Answers Why does Venus have such a
great difference in temperature between its "no greenhouse" temperature and its actual
temperature?
Mercury - Answers Which terrestrial world experiences the greatest change between its daytime
temperature and night temperature?
gases that absorb infrared light - Answers What are greenhouse gases?
Greenhouse gases transmit visible light, allowing it to heat the surface, but then absorb infrared light
emitted by the surface, trapping the heat near the surface. - Answers How does the greenhouse
effect work?
CO2 and H2O - Answers Of the four gases CO2, H2O, N2, and O2, which are greenhouse gases?
below the freezing point of water - Answers What would Earth's average surface temperature be if it
had no greenhouse effect?
absorption of ultraviolet light by ozone - Answers Earth's stratosphere is heated primarily by which
process?
are absorbed in Earth's thermosphere. - Answers x-rays from the Sun's corona
thermosphere, troposphere, stratosphere, exosphere - Answers Which of the following lists the
layers of a generic planetary atmosphere in the correct order from lowest to highest altitude?
Its atmosphere does not contain enough of an ultraviolet-absorbing gas - Answers Why doesn't Mars
have a stratosphere?
Air molecules scatter blue light more effectively than red light. - Answers Why is the sky blue?
Temperature decreases with altitude in the troposphere, but this trend reverses in the stratosphere. -
Answers Why does convection occur in the troposphere, but not in the stratosphere?
Faster rotation rates produce stronger winds. - Answers How is the atmosphere of a planet affected
by the rotation rate?
a planet's size and rotation rate - Answers What most strongly affects the strength of a planet's
Coriolis effect?
surface ejection caused by micrometeorites and high-energy particles and photons. - Answers
Mercury's small amount of atmospheric gas comes from
There is water ice in craters near the poles. - Answers In what form does water exist on the Moon?
Atmospheric gases were left vulnerable to being stripped into space by solar wind particles. -
Answers How might Mars's weakened magnetic field have allowed for major changes in its climate?
yes, because Mars has a much weaker greenhouse effect than Earth - Answers Suppose that Mars
were located at the same distance from the Sun as Earth, but was otherwise the same. Would it still
be colder than Earth? Why or why not?
frozen in its polar caps and in subsurface ground ice - Answers Where is most of the water that Mars
has today?
Its surface rocks were rusted by oxygen. - Answers Why is Mars red?
Most of Earth's carbon dioxide dissolved in the oceans, where it became incorporated into carbonate
rocks. - Answers Why does Earth's atmosphere contain much less carbon dioxide than Venus's
atmosphere?
Venus has much more carbon dioxide in its atmosphere. - Answers Venus is much hotter than the
Earth. Which of the following explains most of this temperature difference?
It has sulfuric acid rain in its atmosphere, but the drops evaporate before hitting the surface. -
Answers Which of the following best describes rain on Venus?
It once had a substantial amount of water in its atmosphere. - Answers Deuterium is more abundant
on Venus than elsewhere in the solar system. What do we think this fact tells us about Venus?
More evaporation and rainfall would reduce the atmospheric CO2 levels, and the greenhouse effect
would weaken. - Answers Considering just the effects of the carbon dioxide cycle, if the Earth were to
warm up a bit, what would happen?
