The surfaceof Mercury resembles:
a) The Earth
b) The Moon
c) Neptune
d) The Sun
The Caloris Basin on Mercury is similar to:
a) The Pacific ocean
b) The Mare on the moon
c) A cloud formation
d) A solar flare
Ice caps may be found on
a) Earth
b) Mars
c) Mercury
d) All of the above
Why is Mercury mostly iron and nickel?
a) It collided with another planet and lost its crust
b) Its to close to the Sun for lighter elements
c) Both a and b
d) Neither a nor b
What is the term for the 2:3 ration of Mercury’s rotation and revolution?
a) Resonance
b) Eccentricity
c) Orbit
d) Parsec
What causes the runaway greenhouse effect on Venus?
a) Its so close to the Sun
b) It has more gravity
c) Its atmosphere is mostly CO2
d) It’s the same size as Earth
What are clouds made of on Venus?
a) Water Vapor
b) CO2
c) Pillow fluff
d) Sulfuric Acid
The heat and pressure in Venus’ atmosphere causes the volcanoes to flatten. What do we call them?
a) Cinder cones
b) Pancakes domes
c) Sand dunes
d) Hot spots
Why does Venus appear to rotate backwards?
a) Time runs backwards on Venus
b) We see it upside down in mirror telescopes
c) It’s a trick of the cloud cover
d) Its day is longer than its year
What is the name of the largest volcano on Mars?
a) Valles Marinaris
b) Mt Everest
c) Olympus Mons
d) K2
What are the Martian ice caps made of?
a) Water and CO2
b) CO2 and sulfur
c) Just water
d) Just CO2
What evidence do we have of wind on Mars?
a) Tornadoes
b) Barcans and Sand dunes
c) The Great Red Spot
d) Windmills
How long does a Martian dust storm usually last?
a) Minutes
b) Days
c) Months
d) Decades
What evidence is there that water once flowed on Mars?
a) Current lakes and rivers
b) Just the ice caps
c) Earthlike drainage patterns
d) Cloud cover
Where on Mars do scientists suspect an ocean used to exist?
a) Northern Lowlands
b) Southern Highlands
c) Tharsis bulge
d) Olympus mons
What is the face on Mars?
a) A message from aliens
b) A sculpture left by the Apollo astronauts
c) An impact crater
d) A Mesa of Cliffs
What are the names of Mars’ moons?
a) Apollo and Artemis
b) Phobos and Deimos
c) Tom and Jerry
d) Mercury and Venus
What were the first probes to successfully land on Mars and send back pictures?
Spirit and opportunity
Mars 7 and 8
Vikings 1 and 2
Beagle and sojourner
Pathfinder used a new technology to land on Mars. What was it?
Giant airbags
Retrorockets
Heat shields
Splash down
What was the motto of NASA’s new Discovery Program?
To infinity and beyond
Cheaper, faster and better
To go where no man has gone before
Never give up, never surrender
What landform image did Surveyor send back that suggested surface water on Mars?
Crater Lake
Blueberries
Ebserwalde Delta
Ice caps
Where did Spirit and opportunity land?
Meridani Planum and Gusev crater
The moon
Chryse Planum and Utopia planum
North and South polar ice caps
Who were the Columbia Hills named for?
Juan Valdez and his workers
The crew of the space shuttle
South American drug lords
The District of Columbia
What are the “blueberries” of Mars?
Low lying shrubs
Deer droppings
Ball bearings from Opportunity’s wheels
Hematite
What do the layered rocks of Endurance crater suggest?
Repeated episodes of deposition
Jointing in Igneous rocks
Multiple layers of volcanic sulfur
Tire tracks
Why do we see phases of the moon?
a) Because we always see one side of it.
b) Because the Earth revolves around the Sun
c) Because the Moon revolves around the Earth revealing different portions of the lit side.
d) Because the moon falls into the Earth’s shadow
What created the moon?
a) Collision of the Earth with a Mars sized planet
b) It was a comet captured by the Earth’s Gravity
c) The Tides
d) It used to be Atlantis
What are the Maria (plural of Mare) of the moon?
a) Oceans
b) Dust left by the Apollo astronauts
c) Green cheese
d) Frozen lakes of basaltic lava
What phase of the moon must there be for a solar eclipse to occur?
a) New moon
b) Full moon
c) Gibbous waxing
d) Crescent Waning
What causes a lunar eclipse?
a) The moon’s shadow falls on the Earth
b) The moon falls in the Earth’s shadow
c) The sun sets as the full moon is rising
d) High cloud cover causes the full moon to be blocked for a hour
When did we first see the far side of the moon?
a) We see it every month
b) When the Lunar and Ranger landers went there
c) The landing of Apollo 11
d) We’ve never seen it
Short answer:Describe Venus in terms of its surface temperature, clouds and atmosphere, and air pressure.
What was the purpose of the giant airbags used by the rover missions.
Describe the differences in the Viking, Pathfinder and Spirit and Opportunity probes and rovers.
Why did Orsons Welles’ fictional broadcast of “War of the Worlds” cause a panic in New Jersey?