Question 1

Despite the high temperatures deep in the interiors of giant planets,their cores remain liquid because:

Accepted Answer

A)  they are under very high pressures. 
B)  gravitational potential energy is being converted into thermal energy in the cores. 
C)  they are composed of heavy materials like rock and water. 
D)  their rotations are rapid compared to those of the terrestrial planets. 
A)  they are under very high pressures. 
B)  gravitational potential energy is being converted into thermal energy in the cores. 
C)  they are composed of heavy materials like rock and water. 
D)  their rotations are rapid compared to those of the terrestrial planets.

Question 2

The gas giants are composed primarily of:

Accepted Answer

A)  hydrogen. 
B)  helium. 
C)  water. 
D)  ammonia. 
A)  hydrogen. 
B)  helium. 
C)  water. 
D)  ammonia.

Question 3

Why do we find methane ice clouds above water ice clouds in the atmospheres of Uranus and Neptune?

Accepted Answer

A)  Methane ice clouds are lighter than water ice clouds. 
B)  Methane is far more plentiful than water on Uranus and Neptune. 
C)  Methane is in a liquid/gas state at lower temperatures than water. 
D)  All of the above are good reasons. 
A)  Methane ice clouds are lighter than water ice clouds. 
B)  Methane is far more plentiful than water on Uranus and Neptune. 
C)  Methane is in a liquid/gas state at lower temperatures than water. 
D)  All of the above are good reasons.

Question 4

If the flux of sunlight on a planet suggested its temperature should be 200 K,but its actual temperature was 220 K,then how much more energy does this planet emit relative to the energy it receives from its parent star?

Accepted Answer

A)  5.3 times more energy 
B)  2.2 times more energy 
C)  1.1 times more energy 
D)  1.5 times more energy 
A)  5.3 times more energy 
B)  2.2 times more energy 
C)  1.1 times more energy 
D)  1.5 times more energy

Question 5

________ has the most extreme seasons of any planet in the Solar System.

Accepted Answer

A)  Jupiter 
B)  Saturn 
C)  Uranus 
D)  Neptune 
A)  Jupiter 
B)  Saturn 
C)  Uranus 
D)  Neptune

Question 6

Examine the figure below.Why are winds on the giant planets far faster than those on Earth?

Accepted Answer

Their surfaces are r

Question 7

The compositions of Uranus and Neptune differ primarily from those of Jupiter and Saturn in that the outer two planets contain more:

Accepted Answer

A)  hydrogen. 
B)  helium. 
C)  water ice. 
D)  carbon dioxide. 
A)  hydrogen. 
B)  helium. 
C)  water ice. 
D)  carbon dioxide.

Question 8

You could fit roughly ________ Jupiters across the diameter of the Sun and roughly ________ Earths across Jupiter's diameter.

Accepted Answer

A)  10; 100 
B)  100; 10 
C)  10; 10 
D)  100; 100 
A)  10; 100 
B)  100; 10 
C)  10; 10 
D)  100; 100

Question 9

How does the thickness of Saturn's bright ring system compare to its diameter?

Accepted Answer

A)  It's about 10 times thinner. 
B)  It's about 1,000 times thinner. 
C)  It's about 100,000 times thinner. 
D)  It's about 10 million times thinner. 
A)  It's about 10 times thinner. 
B)  It's about 1,000 times thinner. 
C)  It's about 100,000 times thinner. 
D)  It's about 10 million times thinner.

Question 10

Rings of giant planets are very thin compared to their diameters mainly because:

Accepted Answer

A)  of collisions between ring particles. 
B)  moons that tidally disrupt have small diameters. 
C)  energy is conserved when a moon tidally disrupts. 
D)  the planets have large tidal forces. 
A)  of collisions between ring particles. 
B)  moons that tidally disrupt have small diameters. 
C)  energy is conserved when a moon tidally disrupts. 
D)  the planets have large tidal forces.

Question 11

If you monitor Jupiter's atmosphere and you see a storm move from a longitude of 60° west to a longitude of 80° west over 6 days,what is the wind speed at this storm's latitude on Jupiter? Note that these positions are measured on a coordinate system that rotates with the planet's interior.(The radius of Jupiter is 7.2 × 10⁴ km.)

Accepted Answer

A)  700 m/s 
B)  300 m/s 
C)  100 m/s 
D)  50 m/s 
A)  700 m/s 
B)  300 m/s 
C)  100 m/s 
D)  50 m/s

Question 12

Explain how tidal stress can rip apart objects.

Accepted Answer

When the difference of the forces of gra

Question 13

Explain why it was difficult for the Voyager space probe to detect Jupiter's ring system as it was approaching the planet but easy for it to detect the rings once it had passed behind Jupiter.

Accepted Answer

Jupiter's ring system is composed mostly

Question 14

Why do astronomers hypothesize that Saturn has such prominent rings,and does the observed total mass in the ring system support this theory?

Accepted Answer

In the past,a moon must have passed with

Question 15

Why are Jupiter and Saturn not perfectly spherical?

Accepted Answer

A)  They formed from the collision of two large planetesimals. 
B)  They rotate rapidly. 
C)  They have storms that develop preferentially along their equators. 
D)  They have very active auroras that heat the atmospheres along the poles. 
A)  They formed from the collision of two large planetesimals. 
B)  They rotate rapidly. 
C)  They have storms that develop preferentially along their equators. 
D)  They have very active auroras that heat the atmospheres along the poles.

Question 16

Which of the giant planets was predicted to exist mathematically before it was ever seen through a telescope?

Accepted Answer

A)  Jupiter 
B)  Saturn 
C)  Uranus 
D)  Neptune 
A)  Jupiter 
B)  Saturn 
C)  Uranus 
D)  Neptune

Question 17

Why can water exist in the hot interiors of the giant planets?

Accepted Answer

A)  The pressure is high enough to prevent the water from becoming vapor. 
B)  Some of the metallic hydrogen in the core mixes with oxygen. 
C)  Regions of the interior are cooler than the surrounding regions. 
D)  Water released from moons via cryovolcanism is absorbed. 
A)  The pressure is high enough to prevent the water from becoming vapor. 
B)  Some of the metallic hydrogen in the core mixes with oxygen. 
C)  Regions of the interior are cooler than the surrounding regions. 
D)  Water released from moons via cryovolcanism is absorbed.

Question 18

Each season is 42 years long on Uranus because:

Accepted Answer

A)  they change on the timescale of Uranus's orbital period. 
B)  Uranus rotates so slowly. 
C)  Uranus's rotational axis is tipped by 45° relative to its orbital axis. 
D)  Hadley circulation is ineffective in transferring heat in Uranus's atmosphere. 
A)  they change on the timescale of Uranus's orbital period. 
B)  Uranus rotates so slowly. 
C)  Uranus's rotational axis is tipped by 45° relative to its orbital axis. 
D)  Hadley circulation is ineffective in transferring heat in Uranus's atmosphere.

Question 19

If you could find a large enough ocean,which one of these planets would float in it?

Accepted Answer

A)  Uranus 
B)  Saturn 
C)  Neptune 
D)  Mars 
A)  Uranus 
B)  Saturn 
C)  Neptune 
D)  Mars

Question 20

What is the ratio of Jupiter's volume to that of Earth's if both planets can be modeled as spheres and Jupiter's radius is 11 times that of Earth's?

Accepted Answer

The volume of a sphere is (4/3

Despite the high temperatures deep in the interiors of giant planets,their cores remain liquid because:

The gas giants are composed primarily of:

Why do we find methane ice clouds above water ice clouds in the atmospheres of Uranus and Neptune?

If the flux of sunlight on a planet suggested its temperature should be 200 K,but its actual temperature was 220 K,then how much more energy does this planet emit relative to the energy it receives from its parent star?

________ has the most extreme seasons of any planet in the Solar System.

Examine the figure below.Why are winds on the giant planets far faster than those on Earth?

The compositions of Uranus and Neptune differ primarily from those of Jupiter and Saturn in that the outer two planets contain more:

You could fit roughly Jupiters across the diameter of the Sun and roughly Earths across Jupiter's diameter.

How does the thickness of Saturn's bright ring system compare to its diameter?

Rings of giant planets are very thin compared to their diameters mainly because:

Explain how tidal stress can rip apart objects.

Explain why it was difficult for the Voyager space probe to detect Jupiter's ring system as it was approaching the planet but easy for it to detect the rings once it had passed behind Jupiter.

Why do astronomers hypothesize that Saturn has such prominent rings,and does the observed total mass in the ring system support this theory?

Why are Jupiter and Saturn not perfectly spherical?

Which of the giant planets was predicted to exist mathematically before it was ever seen through a telescope?

Why can water exist in the hot interiors of the giant planets?

Each season is 42 years long on Uranus because:

If you could find a large enough ocean,which one of these planets would float in it?

What is the ratio of Jupiter's volume to that of Earth's if both planets can be modeled as spheres and Jupiter's radius is 11 times that of Earth's?

Thinking Like an Astronomer

Patterns in the Skymotions of Earth and the Moon

Laws of Motion

Light and Telescopes

The Formation of Stars and Planets

Terrestrial Worlds in the Inner Solar System

Atmospheres of Venus, earth, and Mars

Small Bodies of the Solar System

Measuring the Stars

Our Star: the Sun

Evolution of Low-Mass Stars

Evolution of High-Mass Stars

Measuring Galaxies

Our Galaxy: the Milky Way

The Evolution of the Universe

Formation of Structure

Life in the Universe

Filters

Exam 8: The Giant Planets

Despite the high temperatures deep in the interiors of giant planets,their cores remain liquid because:

The gas giants are composed primarily of:

Why do we find methane ice clouds above water ice clouds in the atmospheres of Uranus and Neptune?

If the flux of sunlight on a planet suggested its temperature should be 200 K,but its actual temperature was 220 K,then how much more energy does this planet emit relative to the energy it receives from its parent star?

________ has the most extreme seasons of any planet in the Solar System.

Examine the figure below.Why are winds on the giant planets far faster than those on Earth?

The compositions of Uranus and Neptune differ primarily from those of Jupiter and Saturn in that the outer two planets contain more:

You could fit roughly ________ Jupiters across the diameter of the Sun and roughly ________ Earths across Jupiter's diameter.

How does the thickness of Saturn's bright ring system compare to its diameter?

Rings of giant planets are very thin compared to their diameters mainly because:

Explain how tidal stress can rip apart objects.

Explain why it was difficult for the Voyager space probe to detect Jupiter's ring system as it was approaching the planet but easy for it to detect the rings once it had passed behind Jupiter.

Why do astronomers hypothesize that Saturn has such prominent rings,and does the observed total mass in the ring system support this theory?

Why are Jupiter and Saturn not perfectly spherical?

Which of the giant planets was predicted to exist mathematically before it was ever seen through a telescope?

Why can water exist in the hot interiors of the giant planets?

Each season is 42 years long on Uranus because:

If you could find a large enough ocean,which one of these planets would float in it?

What is the ratio of Jupiter's volume to that of Earth's if both planets can be modeled as spheres and Jupiter's radius is 11 times that of Earth's?

Thinking Like an Astronomer

Patterns in the Skymotions of Earth and the Moon

Laws of Motion

Light and Telescopes

The Formation of Stars and Planets

Terrestrial Worlds in the Inner Solar System

Atmospheres of Venus, earth, and Mars

Small Bodies of the Solar System

Measuring the Stars

Our Star: the Sun

Evolution of Low-Mass Stars

Evolution of High-Mass Stars

Measuring Galaxies

Our Galaxy: the Milky Way

The Evolution of the Universe

Formation of Structure

Life in the Universe

Filters

You could fit roughly Jupiters across the diameter of the Sun and roughly Earths across Jupiter's diameter.