Characteristics and Origins of the Solar System

First Hour Examination (Sample)

March 1, 2004

No books or notes to be used with this exam. Note that not all questions have the same value. For the 3 and 5 point questions, write in complete sentences. The answers to the 5 point questions should at most be half a page or so in length. I don’t want to read a thesis. Write legibly, preferably in pen.

Walk with Ursus!

1. What causes the very basic astronomical phenomenon of the rising and setting of the Sun, Moon, and stars? (1pt)

2. What is responsible for the phenomenon of seasons here on Earth? By seasons I here mean changes in temperature and length of day at different times of the year. (1pt)

3. What is the term for the outermost part of the solid Earth, where we live? (1pt)

4. Certain kinds of atomic nuclei are useful for dating rocks and other objects. What is the scientific name for these nuclei? (1pt)

5. What are the two lowest layers of the Earth’s atmosphere? (1pt)

6. Roughly where in the solar system is Mars relative to the Earth? How big is Mars relative to the Earth? (2pts)

7. Kepler’s 3^rd Law says something about the sizes and periods of planetary orbits. Say in words what it is, or write down an equation if you remember it, and can define the variables. (2pts)

8. The Celestial Coordinate System has two coordinates which we use to express the position of a star or planet. What are these two coordinates? (2pts)

9. Discuss or describe an observation which argues against Mars ever having had extensive, standing bodies of water. (3pts)

10. Eclipses do not happen every month. Why not? (3pts)

11. You are abducted by aliens, and taken into their spaceship, which goes through a time warp. They tell you that the spaceship is in orbit around the planet Earth. You look through the porthole at the planet below for a while, and know that the aliens have taken you 250 million years back in the past. Explain how you would know this. (3pts)

12. Describe some of the conditions that make the surface of Mars uninhabitable at the present time. (5pts)

13. In class I described the main scientific result of the Apollo program. What was that result, and discuss why it was important. (5pts)

14. Explain what happens in a lunar eclipse. Be sure to note the phase of the Moon when this occurs. (5pts)

15. Describe in words (use equations if you prefer) how we can determine the age of formation of rocks. Use scientific terms for the principal ideas. (5pts)