Science: Earth and Space - Quiz 32

Mia was watching the night sky when she saw a bright object streak across and land on the ground. What is this rocky or metallic object called when it lands on the earth's surface?

• meteorite

• comet

• asteroid

• planet

David and Grace are discussing celestial objects. David asks, "What is the ring containing objects that resemble comet nuclei and orbit farther from the sun than Neptune does?"

• Kuiper belt

• Asteroid belt

• Oort cloud

• Zodiacal cloud

During a school science fair, Harper presented a project about a famous astronomer who correctly calculated the return of a comet seen in 1682. Who was this astronomer?

• Edmond Halley

• Isaac Newton

• Johannes Kepler

• Galileo Galilei

Benjamin and Scarlett are studying astronomy. They learn about a group of asteroids located between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. What is this group called?

• asteroid belt

• comet belt

• planet belt

• star belt

Grace and Jackson are observing a comet through a telescope. They notice a cloud of gas and dust surrounding the nucleus of the comet. What is this cloud called?

• coma

• tail

• nucleus

• orbit

Luna and Michael were camping in the mountains when they noticed a spectacular event in the night sky. What phenomenon might they be witnessing as the earth passes through a comet’s trail of small space rocks?

• meteor shower

• solar eclipse

• lunar eclipse

• aurora borealis

Liam and Abigail are observing a comet through a telescope. They notice that the comet's tail has two distinct parts. What components of a comet tail separate because they react differently with the solar wind?

• dust and gas

• gas and rock

• rock and ice

• ice and dust

Liam was camping with his friends when they saw a small chunk of rock or metal traveling through Earth’s atmosphere, glowing due to adiabatic heating. What did they see?

• meteorite

• meteoroid

• meteor

• asteroid

Olivia and Priya are observing a comet through a telescope. They notice that the comet’s tail grows smaller as it travels away from the sun. Why does this happen?

• lower temperature

• weaker solar wind

• less light

• decreased orbital speed

During a school astronomy club meeting, the teacher asked, "Which of the following comets has the shortest period?"

• Halley’s comet

• Comet Hale-Bopp

• Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9

• Encke’s comet