Exam 9: Atmospheres of the Terrestrial Planets

According to the figure shown below, as you increase in altitude in the Earth's lower atmosphere, the atmospheric pressure _________ dramatically at a(n) _________ rate.

Hurricanes are powered by:

By examining the images shown below, what can you conclude?

Most of Earth's present-day atmosphere comes from a combination of what three sources?

A gas eventually will escape from a planet's atmosphere if the average velocity of the atoms exceeds 1/6 times the escape velocity of the planet. If the average velocity of water vapor in Venus's atmosphere is 0.9 km/s, would it eventually escape into outer space? Note that Venus's mass is 5 * 10²⁴ kg and its radius is 6,050 km.

Figure 2 -According to Figure 2, what effect does doubling the temperature of a gas while keeping its volume constant have on the pressure of the gas?

Venus rotates so rapidly that the dominant form of atmospheric circulation is powered by hurricanes moving from its equator to its poles.

When the Martian summer occurs and the daytime temperature is 20°C, water on the surface melts and forms small pools of liquid.

According to the figure shown below, the different layers of Earth's atmosphere are defined by:

The main greenhouse gases in the atmosphere of the terrestrial planets are:

Venus and Earth probably formed with similar amounts of carbon dioxide in their secondary atmospheres. Which of the following is TRUE?

If sunlight cannot penetrate Venus's cloud layer efficiently, why does the temperature of the planet remain so high?

Which of the following contributes most to the large difference in the average daytime and nighttime temperatures on the Moon?

Auroras are caused by:

In the absence of a greenhouse effect, water on the surface of Earth would be frozen.

Where is most of Earth's supply of carbon dioxide today?

Earth releases the energy it receives from the Sun by emitting _________ radiation.

If water vapor were released from Venus's surface due to tectonic activity into its upper atmosphere, what would most likely happen to it?

Without the ozone layer, life on Earth would be in danger from increased levels of _________ radiation.

If the average CO₂ molecule in Venus's atmosphere has a velocity of 0.6 km/s, what would the velocity be for a hydrogen atom in Venus's atmosphere? Note the mass of a CO₂ molecule is 44 times that of a hydrogen atom.