Exploring the Solar System's Hidden Objects

How old is the solar system?

• 4.6 billion years

• 3.5 billion years

• 2.5 billion years

• 5 billion years

What percentage of the known mass orbiting the Sun is made up by the outer solar system's four planets?

• 75%

• 50%

• 99%

• 85%

What year did Pluto lose its status as the ninth planet?

• 2004

• 2006

• 2008

• 2010

Which of the following is NOT a criterion for being classified as a planet?

• Must have sufficient gravity to maintain a spherical shape

• Must have cleared its orbit of other objects

• Must be the largest object in its orbit

• Must orbit the Sun

What led to Pluto's demotion from being considered a planet?

• Its size

• Its distance from the Sun

• Its orbit

• Its inability to clear its orbit of other objects

How many dwarf planets do astronomers believe may exist in our solar system?

• Less than 20

• As many as 42

• More than 100

• Exactly 10

What is the Kuiper belt primarily home to?

• Dwarf planets

• Asteroids

• Interstellar dust

• Most of the solar system's comets

Which region contains objects with strange orbits often small and icy?

• Kuiper belt

• Scattered disc

• Oort Cloud

• Asteroid belt

What does the heliosphere represent?

• The center of the solar system

• The boundary between solar and interstellar winds

• The region containing most of the solar system's dwarf planets

• A cluster of asteroids

What is the primary goal of sending spacecraft into the solar system?

• To understand our place in the universe

• To mine asteroids

• To find new planets

• To establish colonies

Tags

NGSS.HS-ESS1-4