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Astronomy Ch 9. Venus
MULTIPLE CHOICE. Choose the one alternative that best completes the statement or answers the question.
1) Venus is brightest as seen from Earth:
A) 36 days before or after inferior conjunction, appearing as a large crescent.
B) at greatest western elongation, appearing half lit in the morning sky.
C) at superior conjunction, and fully lit.
D) at greatest eastern elongation, appearing half lit in the evening sky.
E) at inferior conjunction, when closest to Earth and largest in apparent size.
1)
2) At closest approach Venus is about how far from Earth?
A) 0.5 AU
B) 0.1 AU
C) 0.7 AU
D) 0.4 AU
E) 0.3 AU
2)
3) Venus' full phase occurs when Venus is at:
A) conjunction.
B) opposition.
C) superior conjunction.
D) the deferent.
E) inferior conjunction.
3)
4) In the time between two closest approaches to Earth, Venus rotates almost exactly five times
relative to the sun. The consequence of this is that:
A) Venus presents the opposite hemisphere to Earth at each superior conjunction.
B) Venus presents the opposite hemisphere to Earth at each inferior conjunction.
C) Venus' rotation is completely unrelated to the distant Earth.
D) Venus always presents the same face to Earth at inferior conjunction.
E) Earth always presents the same face to Venus at inferior conjunction.
4)
5) Venus orbits the Sun in 225 days. How long does it take to rotate on its axis?
A) 243 days, even though the Earth's tidal pull is not involved
B) 225 days, so it keeps the same face toward the Sun
C) 450 days, exactly at 2:1 spin-orbit resonance
D) 36 days, for reasons unknown
E) 24 hours, 36 minutes, very similar to Earth and Mars
5)
6) Why is it reasonable to conclude that the internal structure and evolution of Venus are basically
Earthlike?
A) They have similar atmospheres and masses.
B) They have similar chemical compositions and surface features.
C) They have similar masses and sizes.
D) They have similar atmospheres and chemical compositions.
E) They have similar surface features and sizes.
6)
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7) Venus' rotation:
A) is counterclockwise, like the other planets.
B) is the fastest of the terrestrial planets.
C) axis is highly tilted to its orbital plane, causing large seasonal changes.
D) takes longer than its orbit around the Sun.
E) is tidally locked to the Sun.
7)
8) Through radar observations it was found that Venus'
A) atmosphere is changing rapidly.
B) orbit around the Sun is in the clockwise sense.
C) orbit around the Sun is speeding up.
D) rotation on its axis is retrograde.
E) orbital period is 243 days.
8)
9) Why does Venus appear so bright to the eye?
A) As seen from Earth, the disk of Venus can appear larger than any other planet's.
B) The planet's cloud-cover is highly reflective, reflecting 60% of the sun's light.
C) Venus is closer to the Sun, so gets more intense sunlight.
D) It gets closer to us than any other planet does.
E) All of the above are correct.
9)
10) Earth and Venus are often called sister planets; in which ways are they most alike?
A) atmospheric composition and density
B) size, density, and surface gravity
C) polar caps and rusty red deserts
D) surface temperature and pressure
E) cloud composition and meteorology
10)
11) What resonance exists between Venus' rotational period and its synodic period?
A) 1:2, like the Cassini Division and the Saturnian Moon Mimas
B) 1:1, like the Moon
C) 5:1, with the Earth always closest to the same side of Venus when they pass
D) 3:2, like the planet Mercury
E) There is no apparent match.
11)
12) Because of its slow rotation period, Venus:
A) gets closer to Earth than any other planet.
B) presents the same side to the Sun all the time.
C) presents the same side to Earth all the time.
D) appears to go through phases like the moon.
E) presents the same side to Earth at each closest approach.
12)
13) The synodic period of Venus is about how many Earth years?
A) about 5 years
B) about 0.7 years
C) about 2 years
D) about 1.25 years
E) about 3.5 years
13)
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14) Venus is only a little bit (5%) smaller than Earth, and its density is only slightly less than Earth's.
Therefore, its mass is:
A) just a little bit greater than Earth's.
B) the same as Earth's.
C) much greater than Earth's (more than 20% different).
D) much less than Earth's (more than 20% different).
E) just a little bit less than Earth's.
14)
15) The surface of Venus can be observed with:
A) most amateur telescopes.
B) the Mt. Wilson 100" telescope.
C) radar observations from Arecibo.
D) the Hubble Space Telescope.
E) All of these have provided detailed observations about the surface of our sister planet.
15)
16) The synodic period of Venus is the time it takes for:
A) Venus to complete a full cycle of phases.
B) Earth to go from opposition to conjunction, relative to Venus.
C) Venus to complete a full orbit around the Sun.
D) Earth to complete a full orbit around the Sun.
E) Venus to complete a full rotation on its axis.
16)
17) Our most detailed maps of Venus come from:
A) Earth based radio telescopes.
B) direct observation from Earth based optical telescopes.
C) manned landings.
D) the Magellan spaceprobe.
E) the Hubble Space Telescope.
17)
18) Our best data about the surface topography of Venus has come from:
A) Magellan radar data and radar observations of the planet from Earth.
B) the three flybys of Mariner 10.
C) radio and visual observations.
D) orbiter photos from Pioneer Venus Orbiter.
E) spacecraft flybys like Mariner 2 and visual observations of the planet.
18)
19) The orbiter that gave us the most detailed maps of Venus to date was:
A) Pioneer 11.
B) Cassini.
C) Galileo.
D) Venera 14.
E) Magellan.
19)
20) Which of the following characterizes a shield volcano?
A) It cannot grow very large, for it has a very short span of eruption.
B) It sits above a hot spot in the planet's mantle.
C) It can erupt only briefly before being dragged off the hot spot.
D) It forms along a plate boundary.
E) It is dormant.
20)
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21) Which statement is true of Venus' surface?
A) There are no shield volcanoes.
B) It has remained unchanged for billions of years.
C) Atmospheric pressure is very low.
D) There are two continent sized uplands.
E) There is an extensive hydrosphere.
21)
22) Compared to Earth, Venus has:
A) a far greater percentage of its surface in low-level ocean basins.
B) about the same percentage of its surface in raised continents.
C) a far greater percentage of its surface in raised continents.
D) a more transparent atmosphere.
E) a lower average surface temperature.
22)
23) A surprise from the Pioneer Venus photos was that:
A) the clouds of Venus are mainly water vapor, like our own.
B) the clouds rotate around the planet in only four days, very unlike the slow surface
rotation.
C) the highest volcano, Maxwell Mons, protrudes above the cloud deck.
D) the craters on Venus are all large.
E) no impact craters at all are found on the Venusian surface.
23)
24) Venus has a feature named Aphrodite Terra. What is this feature?
A) a continental-sized plateau
B) a large basin similar to the maria on the Moon
C) a great rift valley like Valles Marineris on Mars
D) a large impact crater
E) a very large volcano
24)
25) Maxwell Mons on Venus is a huge:
A) ocean basin larger than the Pacific Ocean.
B) rift valley.
C) impact crater larger than Texas.
D) shield volcano.
E) tectonic mountain chain, like the Himalayas.
25)
26) What percentage of the surface of Venus could be characterized as continental-sized highlands?
A) 75%
B) less than 10%
C) 45%
D) about 30%, like the Earth
E) 100%
26)
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27) Various observations suggest there may be recent or even continuing volcanic activity on Venus.
Which of the following has NOT been observed?
A) fluctuations in the level of sulfur dioxide in the planet's atmosphere
B) spacecraft detection over a period of days of flowing lava on Venus
C) surface features resembling rift valleys on Earth
D) bursts of radio energy, similar to those produced by lightning discharges occurring in the
plumes of erupting volcanoes on Earth
E) larger shield volcanoes than Hawaii
27)
28) What is thought to have caused the craters on Venus?
A) Because meteorites cannot survive passing through the atmosphere of Venus, all craters
must be volcanic.
B) Venus has very few craters and their origin is not known.
C) Most are volcanic in origin; some are due to meteoritic impacts.
D) Venus' craters originated during differentiation.
E) As in the case of Mercury, all the craters are due to meteorite impacts.
28)
29) Magellan did not find which of these on Venus?
A) coronae, huge but very flat circular features
B) continent sized uplands
C) large shield volcanoes
D) impact craters, all larger than five kilometers across
E) actual volcanic eruptions in progress
29)
30) The largest volcanic structures on Venus are called:
A) calderas.
B) coronae.
C) shield volcanoes.
D) cinder cones.
E) crater cones.
30)
31) The only spacecraft to successfully land on Venus were:
A) NASA's Magellan.
B) ESA's Giotto.
C) Russian Veneras.
D) NASA's Venus Rovers.
E) NASA's Vikings.
31)
32) Why will it be hard to determine the nature of Venus' interior?
A) No photos have ever been returned from Venus' surface.
B) No seismograph can last long enough at Venus' temperatures to pick up quakes.
C) The magnetic field of Venus is much stronger than our own.
D) No orbiter has been able to find the exact mass of Venus.
E) The clouds prevent us from finding the exact diameter and volume of Venus.
32)
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33) The highest peak on Venus is called:
A) Cleopatra.
B) Gula.
C) Lakshmi.
D) Maxwell.
E) Shif.
33)
34) The rilles found in Ovda Regio are evidence of:
A) ancient oceans.
B) plate tectonics.
C) something akin to sea-floor spreading.
D) lava flows.
E) ancient river beds.
34)
35) A characteristic of shield volcanoes is the formation of a crater at the summit which occurs
when:
A) the underlying hot spot suddenly turns on.
B) the lava flows melt through the thin crust of the peak.
C) the volcano is impacted by a large meteorite.
D) the volcano erupts explosively.
E) the lava withdraws and the surface collapses.
35)
36) The relatively small number of impact craters and the near absence of small craters on the
surface of Venus is thought to be a result of:
A) the ancient oceans that once existed on Venus.
B) the thick Venusian atmosphere.
C) the position of Venus in the solar system -- not many meteoroids cross Venus' orbit.
D) the soft and resilient nature of the Venusian surface.
E) Venus' lack of a satellite.
36)
37) Volcanic activity on Venus is thought to be:
A) more frequent, but less violent than volcanic activity on Earth.
B) the same as volcanic activity on Earth.
C) less frequent, but more violent than volcanic activity on Earth.
D) less frequent and less violent than volcanic activity on Earth.
E) more frequent and more violent than volcanic activity on Earth.
37)
38) The main problem spacecraft have encountered in landing on Venus is:
A) the acid rain.
B) the extremely high temperatures.
C) the thick atmosphere.
D) the rocky surface.
E) the strong winds.
38)
39) The atmospheric pressure on Venus:
A) causes variations in surface temperature.
B) is about the same as on Mercury.
C) is much higher than on Earth.
D) shows an extreme change with the seasons.
E) is much lower than on Earth.
39)
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40) What is the result of the Greenhouse effect on the surface environment of Venus?
A) It has little or no effect.
B) It has raised the surface temperature by hundreds of degrees Celsius
C) Its effect is about the same as on Earth.
D) It causes the surface temperature of Venus to become hotter than the Sun.
E) It has reduced the surface temperature by about 30 degrees Celsius.
40)
41) What is the main constituent of the atmosphere of Venus?
A) carbon dioxide
B) nitrogen
C) hydrogen
D) oxygen
E) sulfuric acid
41)
42) Because the atmosphere of Venus is so dense,
A) clouds form at an altitude much lower than on Earth.
B) clouds are made of frozen carbon dioxide ice crystals.
C) clouds form at the same altitude as on Earth.
D) clouds cannot form.
E) clouds form at an altitude much higher than on Earth.
42)
43) The fact that Venus' atmosphere contains carbon dioxide was discovered:
A) by the Magellan spacecraft.
B) through CCD imagery.
C) in early spectroscopic studies.
D) in radar studies.
E) by the Venera spacecraft.
43)
44) The reason that the atmosphere of Venus is over 95% carbon dioxide is thought to be because:
A) the part of the solar nebula where Venus formed contained more carbon dioxide than the
part where Earth formed.
B) Venus' Greenhouse Effect got out of control and became runaway after its oceans of
sulfuric acid evaporated.
C) Venus was much hotter than Earth when its atmosphere formed.
D) life on Earth formed earlier than on Venus.
E) the early plant life on Venus produced the excess carbon dioxide and consumed the
oxygen.
44)
45) What is the composition of the clouds of Venus?
A) sulfur and sulfuric acid droplets
B) hydrogen sulfide and ammonia
C) water, like Earth's clouds
D) frozen carbon dioxide, as on Mars
E) a combination of ammonia and methane, like Uranus
45)
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46) If Venus once had an ocean, where did it go?
A) It exists as abundant water vapor in the planet's atmosphere.
B) It exists trapped in the crust but below the surface.
C) It is found in the cooler polar regions, like at the Moon and Mercury.
D) The water broke into hydrogen, which escaped to space, and oxygen, which became
trapped in the planet's surface rocks.
E) It was lost to space, stripped away by the solar wind.
46)
47) Comparing the clouds of Earth and Venus, we find that:
A) ours lie in the troposphere, within 10 kilometer of our surface, but Venus has a higher
troposphere, with its clouds about 40 kilometers high.
B) both are made chiefly of water vapor.
C) Venus has much more carbon dioxide, so dry ice clouds dominate.
D) Venus is too hot for clouds to form, so we see only a barren world telescopically.
E) like ours, they rotate around Venus slower than Venus rotates on its axis.
47)
48) The absence of a magnetic field on Venus probably stems from its:
A) slow rotation.
B) nearness to the Sun.
C) lower density than Earth, suggesting an absence of an iron core.
D) extremely thick atmosphere.
E) high surface temperatures.
48)
49) Which of the following contributes to Venus being so hot?
A) Its atmosphere is made chiefly of carbon dioxide.
B) It is closer than Earth to the Sun.
C) It has very little axial tilt so the equator is always directly exposed to the Sun.
D) Its atmosphere is much denser than the Earth's.
E) All of the above are factors.
49)
50) Venus' lack of magnetic field means that:
A) the surface of Venus has no protection from the Sun's radiation.
B) there are constant aurorae everywhere on Venus.
C) there is no lightning on Venus.
D) Venus' upper atmosphere is permanently ionized.
E) it doesn't have a liquid metallic core.
50)
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