The Solar System Test consists of 17 questions. Correct answers will be provided after your answers have been submitted.

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1		According to the protoplanet nebular model, the first important event in the creation of the Solar System was
			A)	creation of the Earth.
			B)	massive stars ending their life cycle in supernova.
			C)	creation of the Sun.
			D)	accumulation of dust and solid matter in a huge, bulging disk.
2		A terrestrial planet slightly larger than the Earth's Moon is the eighth largest planet known as
			A)	Uranus
			B)	Venus
			C)	Mercury.
			D)	Pluto
3		The brilliant evening and morning "star" that appears near sunrise or sunset is the planet
			A)	Mercury.
			B)	Saturn
			C)	Jupiter
			D)	Venus.
4		The planet with areas of dry riverbed features with dry tributaries suggesting a former abundance of liquid water is
			A)	Mercury.
			B)	Mars.
			C)	Venus.
			D)	Neptune.
5		This planet has rings of dust-sized particles and more than 7 moons.
			A)	Saturn
			B)	Uranus
			C)	Neptune
			D)	any of the above.
6		The planet with an exceptional tilt to its orbital plane that some do not consider to be a true planet.
			A)	Uranus
			B)	Neptune
			C)	Pluto
			D)	Saturn
7		The disk-shaped region of small icy bodies some 30 to 100 A.U. from the Sun believed to be the source of some comets is called the
			A)	Kuiper Belt.
			B)	Oort Cloud.
			C)	Asteroid Belt.
			D)	None of the above.
8		Most meteorites are
			A)	pieces from the asteroid belt.
			B)	dust from space.
			C)	fragments of comets.
			D)	rocks from deep space outside the Solar System.
9		Which planet(s) has (have) no moons?
			A)	Mercury
			B)	Mercury and Venus
			C)	Venus and Pluto
			D)	All of the planets have at least one moon.
10		Most of the mass of the Solar System is found in
			A)	the terrestrial planets.
			B)	the Sun.
			C)	the comets and asteroids.
			D)	the gas giants.
11		The smallest planet in the solar system is
			A)	Mercury.
			B)	Mars.
			C)	Venus.
			D)	Pluto.
12		Which planet has its axis of rotation tilted so much that it appears to rotate on its side?
			A)	Uranus
			B)	Pluto
			C)	Venus
			D)	Saturn
13		The atmosphere of Venus is predominantly
			A)	nitrogen
			B)	carbon dioxide
			C)	methane
			D)	water vapor
14		Remnants of asteroids that survive the trip through the earth's atmosphere to strike the surface are called
			A)	meteors
			B)	meteorites
			C)	meteoroids
			D)	"shooting stars"
15		Which of the following is true about the surface of Mars?
			A)	There are numerous active volcanoes.
			B)	The polar ice caps are frozen water.
			C)	It is much too cold for liquid water to exist.
			D)	The greenish areas are due to low, scrubby vegetation.
16		Which of the following about Jupiter is not true?
			A)	Because Jupiter is mostly hydrogen, it is only slightly more massive than the earth.
			B)	Much of the planet is composed of hydrogen compressed so greatly that it is liquid.
			C)	The colored bands in the atmosphere are believed to result from atmospheric convection.
			D)	Jupiter is mostly made of light elements like hydrogen and helium.
17		Which of the following statements about the length of a planet's day is true?
			A)	The closer the planet is to the sun, the shorter is its day
			B)	The more massive the planet, the longer its day.
			C)	The four gas giants barely rotate at all.
			D)	None of these are true.