From Belts to Clouds

How do asteroids differ from comets?

• Asteroids are rocky bodies and are denser than the comets, which are made of icy material.

• Asteroids are rocky bodies and are less dense than the comets, which are made of icy material.

• Asteroids are made of icy material and are denser than the comets, which are more rocky.

• Asteroids and comets are both made of rocky and icy material, but asteroids are smaller in size than comets.

Where are most of the known asteroids found?

• between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter

• in the Kuiper belt

• in the Oort cloud

• between the orbits of the jovian planets

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-3

The bright head of a comet, made up of a spherical cloud of gas and dust around the nucleus of a comet, is known as a:

• coma

• nucleus

• plasma

• beacon

Long period comets likely originate in the:

• Asteroid belt

• Kuiper belt

• orbit of Jupiter

• Oort Cloud

The area of outer solar system that is stretched across 20 Astronomical Unit in space is classified as

• Asteroid belt

• Meteroid belt

• Kuiper belt

• Pallas belt

Which is the densest planet in the solar system?

BONUS

• Mercury

• Jupiter

• Earth

• Mars

Which of the following is NOT a dwarf planet?

• Ceres

• Pluto

• Makmake

• Titan

What is the Oort cloud?

• a cluster of asteroids

• a swarm of comets far from the sun

• the cloud that a meteoroid produces in the atmosphere

• the same as the coma of a comet

What's the main reason that scientists study asteroids?

• Because they contain rare elements not found on Earth

• To better understand of the origins of the solar system

• Because they may provide a good source of water in the future

• Because there is a good chance they may destroy the planet

A comet takes over 4,000 years to reach the sun in our solar system. Which of the

following statements is true about this comet?

• It will take less than 200 years to orbit the sun.

• It will never gain a coma.

• It is a long-period comet.

• It is a short-period comet.