Question 1

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

Accepted Answer

Volcanoes,comets,and

Question 2

When learning about light,we predicted that Venus should have a temperature of 250 K based on its albedo and distance from the Sun.Why is Venus's observed average surface temperature equal to 740 K,which is hot enough to melt lead?

Accepted Answer

A) Venus has slow,retrograde rotation,and its seasons are very long. 
B) Venus has many active volcanoes that release heat into its atmosphere. 
C) Venus has a very thin atmosphere,and more sunlight falls onto its surface. 
D) Venus has a strong greenhouse effect. 
E) Venus has a highly eccentric orbit and is sometimes much closer to the Sun than other times. 
A) Venus has slow,retrograde rotation,and its seasons are very long. 
B) Venus has many active volcanoes that release heat into its atmosphere. 
C) Venus has a very thin atmosphere,and more sunlight falls onto its surface. 
D) Venus has a strong greenhouse effect. 
E) Venus has a highly eccentric orbit and is sometimes much closer to the Sun than other times.

Question 3

Based solely on mass and distance from the Sun,which of the following terrestrial planets would you expect to retain the densest secondary atmosphere?

Accepted Answer

A) Mercury 
B) Venus 
C) Mars 
D) the Moon 
E) Earth 
A) Mercury 
B) Venus 
C) Mars 
D) the Moon 
E) Earth

Question 4

Why did the terrestrial planets lose the majority of the gas in their primary atmospheres?

Accepted Answer

A) They were too hot and their escape velocities too low to hold onto them. 
B) The solar wind was too strong and blew these gasses off the planets. 
C) Their high surface temperatures made the gas chemically react with the rock. 
D) The centrifugal force from the planets' fast rotation rates made them fly off. 
E) The initial gases were so heavy when the planet differentiated that they sank to the core. 
A) They were too hot and their escape velocities too low to hold onto them. 
B) The solar wind was too strong and blew these gasses off the planets. 
C) Their high surface temperatures made the gas chemically react with the rock. 
D) The centrifugal force from the planets' fast rotation rates made them fly off. 
E) The initial gases were so heavy when the planet differentiated that they sank to the core.

Question 5

What makes carbon dioxide a highly effective greenhouse gas?

Accepted Answer

A) It easily absorbs UV radiation. 
B) It easily absorbs visible light. 
C) It easily absorbs infrared radiation. 
D) It easily reacts chemically with rock. 
E) It easily photodissociates in the upper atmosphere. 
A) It easily absorbs UV radiation. 
B) It easily absorbs visible light. 
C) It easily absorbs infrared radiation. 
D) It easily reacts chemically with rock. 
E) It easily photodissociates in the upper atmosphere.

Question 6

The best way to look for life on other planets is to search for absorption from nitrogen in their atmospheres in the infrared region of the spectrum.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 7

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

Accepted Answer

A) ultraviolet 
B) X-ray 
C) gamma ray 
D) infrared 
E) microwave 
A) ultraviolet 
B) X-ray 
C) gamma ray 
D) infrared 
E) microwave

Question 8

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

Accepted Answer

A) Venus is covered with clouds. 
B) Earth has a large amount of liquid water. 
C) Some form of ice does exist on Mars,but it does not have large amounts of liquid water. 
D) The planets in order from the least to most dense atmospheres are Venus,Earth,and Mars. 
E) All of the above are valid conclusions. 
A) Venus is covered with clouds. 
B) Earth has a large amount of liquid water. 
C) Some form of ice does exist on Mars,but it does not have large amounts of liquid water. 
D) The planets in order from the least to most dense atmospheres are Venus,Earth,and Mars. 
E) All of the above are valid conclusions.

Question 9

A gas eventually will escape from a planet's atmosphere if the average velocity of its atoms exceeds 1⁄6 times the escape velocity of the planet.If the average velocity of water vapor in Venus's atmosphere is 0.5 km/s,what would be the average velocity of a single hydrogen atom? If Venus's escape velocity is 11 km/s,will hydrogen atoms eventually escape?

Accepted Answer

Because of equipartition of en

Question 10

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

Accepted Answer

Atmospheric CO₂ reacted with exposed mine

Question 11

Aurorae are produced only near the northern and southern magnetic poles of a planet because charged particles arriving in the solar wind cannot cross the magnetic field lines.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 12

Suppose you go out hiking in the snow on a mountain top on a cold winter day when the temperature outside is 0 C = 273 K and the pressure is 0.75 bar.If you brought along a package of potato chips that was sealed at sea level when the temperature was 24 C = 297 K,what would have happened to the volume of the bag of chips? By how much will the volume have changed?

Accepted Answer

The ideal gas law says that P ∝ ρT ∝ T/V

Question 13

The nitrogen in the Earth's atmosphere primarily came from:

Accepted Answer

A) ammonia delivered by comet impacts 
B) photosynthesis done by algae and plants 
C) oxidation of silicate rich minerals 
D) rock delivered by asteroid impacts 
E) its primary atmosphere 
A) ammonia delivered by comet impacts 
B) photosynthesis done by algae and plants 
C) oxidation of silicate rich minerals 
D) rock delivered by asteroid impacts 
E) its primary atmosphere

Question 14

Auroras are caused by:

Accepted Answer

A) gases fluorescing in the atmosphere due to collisions with solar wind particles 
B) the magnetosphere of Earth touching its atmosphere 
C) the ozone layer being destroyed by UV light 
D) a product of the atmospheric greenhouse effect 
E) scattering of sunlight from particles in the Earth's stratosphere 
A) gases fluorescing in the atmosphere due to collisions with solar wind particles 
B) the magnetosphere of Earth touching its atmosphere 
C) the ozone layer being destroyed by UV light 
D) a product of the atmospheric greenhouse effect 
E) scattering of sunlight from particles in the Earth's stratosphere

Question 15

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

Accepted Answer

A) infrared 
B) visible 
C) ultraviolet 
D) radio 
E) microwave 
A) infrared 
B) visible 
C) ultraviolet 
D) radio 
E) microwave

Question 16

What is the reason Mercury has so little gas in its atmosphere?

Accepted Answer

A) Its mass is small. 
B) It has a high temperature. 
C) It is close to the Sun. 
D) Its escape velocity is low. 
E) All of the above are reasons. 
A) Its mass is small. 
B) It has a high temperature. 
C) It is close to the Sun. 
D) Its escape velocity is low. 
E) All of the above are reasons.

Question 17

In the stratosphere of the Earth's atmosphere,how does the temperature vary with increasing altitude and what causes this variation?

Accepted Answer

Ozone in the stratosphere absorbs ultrav

Question 18

Venus's atmospheric clouds are so thick that the surface of the planet is not seen when observing it in visible light.

Accepted Answer

A) True 
 B)False

Question 19

Approximately _________ years ago,_________ began producing oxygen in enough amounts to be a significant fraction in the Earth's atmosphere.

Accepted Answer

A) 100 million;trees and plants 
B) 1 billion;trees and plants 
C) 250 million;bacteria and algae 
D) 2.5 billion;bacteria and algae 
E) 2,000;animals and humans 
A) 100 million;trees and plants 
B) 1 billion;trees and plants 
C) 250 million;bacteria and algae 
D) 2.5 billion;bacteria and algae 
E) 2,000;animals and humans

Question 20

Earth's atmosphere is a (seemingly)enormous blanket roughly 250 km thick.What percentage of Earth's radius,which is 6,400 km,does this represent? How does it compare to the average depth of the oceans,which is 3 km?

Accepted Answer

The Earth's atmosphere is 250/6,400 = 0.

Exam 9: Atmospheres of the Terrestrial Planets

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

When learning about light,we predicted that Venus should have a temperature of 250 K based on its albedo and distance from the Sun.Why is Venus's observed average surface temperature equal to 740 K,which is hot enough to melt lead?

Based solely on mass and distance from the Sun,which of the following terrestrial planets would you expect to retain the densest secondary atmosphere?

Why did the terrestrial planets lose the majority of the gas in their primary atmospheres?

What makes carbon dioxide a highly effective greenhouse gas?

The best way to look for life on other planets is to search for absorption from nitrogen in their atmospheres in the infrared region of the spectrum.

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

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

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

Aurorae are produced only near the northern and southern magnetic poles of a planet because charged particles arriving in the solar wind cannot cross the magnetic field lines.

The nitrogen in the Earth's atmosphere primarily came from:

Auroras are caused by:

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

What is the reason Mercury has so little gas in its atmosphere?

In the stratosphere of the Earth's atmosphere,how does the temperature vary with increasing altitude and what causes this variation?

Venus's atmospheric clouds are so thick that the surface of the planet is not seen when observing it in visible light.

Approximately _________ years ago,_________ began producing oxygen in enough amounts to be a significant fraction in the Earth's atmosphere.

Earth's atmosphere is a (seemingly)enormous blanket roughly 250 km thick.What percentage of Earth's radius,which is 6,400 km,does this represent? How does it compare to the average depth of the oceans,which is 3 km?

Why Learn Astronomy

Patterns in the Skymotions of Earth

Motion of Astronomical Bodies

Gravity and Orbits

Light

The Tools of the Astronomer

The Birth and Evolution of Planetary Systems

The Terrestrial Planets and Earths Moon

Worlds of Gas and Liquid the Giant Planets

Planetary Adornments Moons and Rings

Dwarf Planets and Small Solar System Bodies

Taking the Measure of Stars

Our Starthe Sun

Star Formation and the Interstellar Medium

Evolution of Low-Mass Stars

Evolution of High-Mass Stars

Relativity and Black Holes

The Expanding Universe

Galaxies

The Milky Waya Normal Spiral Galaxy

Modern Cosmology

Large-Scale Structure in the Universe

Life

Filters

Approximately _ years ago,_ began producing oxygen in enough amounts to be a significant fraction in the Earth's atmosphere.