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Solar System Classification

Total questions: 36

Worksheet time: 23mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

An astronomical unit (AU) refers to the distance between

a)

the Moon and the Sun.

b)

Earth and the Moon.

c)

the Sun and the nearest star.

d)

Earth and the Sun.

2.

A large, solid spherical body in the solar system is classified as a moon. Which characteristic of the body gives it this classification?

a)

It lacks liquid water.

b)

It reflects light from a star.

c)

It orbits a nearby planet.

d)

It rotates on its axis.

3.

Which object in our solar system is a star?

a)

Moon

b)

Sun

c)

Meteor

d)

Sirius B

4.
List one of the two outer boundaries of the Solar System.
a)
Oort Cloud
b)
Asteroid Belt
c)
Saturn's Rings
d)
Frost Line
5.
List two terrestrial (rocky) planets.
a)
Mars, Mercury
b)
Sun, Polaris
c)
Earth, Pluto
d)
Ganymede, Europa
6.
List two Jovian (gas giant) planets.
a)
Uranus, Saturn
b)
Earth, Mars
c)
Titan, Demos
d)
Jupiter, Mercury
7.
List two dwarf planets.
a)
Makemake, Pluto
b)
Mercury, Mars
c)
Neptune, Uranus
d)
Phobos, The Moon
8.
Between which two planets is the asteroid belt located?
a)
Mercury & Venus
b)
Mars & Jupiter
c)
Uranus & Neptune
d)
Neptune & Pluto
9.
Made of ice, dust and gas
a)
asteroid
b)
meteoroid
c)
comet
d)
meteor
10.
Appears as a streak in the sky.
a)
asteroid
b)
meteoroid
c)
comet
d)
meteor
11.
Found in the Oort Cloud
a)
asteroid
b)
meteoroid
c)
comet
d)
meteor
12.
Sometimes called "dirty snowballs".
a)
asteoids
b)
meteoroids
c)
comets
d)
meteors
13.
Piece of a meteoroid that strikes the earth's surface
a)
comet
b)
asteroid
c)
meteor
d)
meteorite
14.

What's the difference between comets and asteroids?

a)

Asteroids are made of metal and rock, while Comets are ice and rock

b)

Asteroids are made of ice and rock, while Comets are made of metals and rock

c)

There is no difference

d)

Asteroids are made of stardust, while Comets are made up of water

15.

Where do Long-period comets come from?

a)

Kuiper belt

b)

Oort cloud

c)

Past Pluto

16.

What's the difference between meteoroid, meteor, and meteorite?

a)

Meteoroids are sand size, meteors are streaks of light in the sky, and a meteorite is the meteors that has landed

b)

Meteoroids are huge, Meteors are the pieces that land, and Meteorites are shooting stars

c)

There are no differences

d)

Meteoroids are small, Meteors are another name for comets, and Meteorites are shooting stars

17.

What causes Meteoroids to burst into flames upon entering the Earth's Atmosphere?

a)

They are made out of flammable materials

b)

They cannot handle the pressure of Earth

c)

They do not burst into flames, they only reflect the Sun's light

d)

Friction from the Earths atmosphere

18.

What do we call the path of an object that revolves around another object in space?

a)

Gravitational pull

b)

Orbit

c)

Free fall

d)

Spinning

19.

What is the invisible force that causes massive objects to pull other objects towards them?

a)

Orbit

b)

Gravitational Pull

c)

Might

d)

Force

20.

One similarity between asteroids, comets and meteoroids is that they all:

a)

are made of rock

b)

come from the Asteroid Belt

c)

come from the Oort Cloud

d)

orbit the sun

21.

The tail of a comet usually faces

a)

toward the sun.

b)

toward the Earth.

c)

away from the Sun.

d)

away from the Earth.

22.

Which object in space is larger?

a)

Asteroid

b)

Meteoroid

23.

A comet forms a tail when

a)

It is deep in outer space and begins to melt

b)

It gets close to the sun and begins to melt

24.

Planets, asteroids, comets and meteoroids all stay in orbit around the sun due to the sun's strong force of _________________

a)

electricity

b)

solar power

c)

gravity

d)

motion

25.
A shooting star is actually a...
a)
Comet
b)
Meteoroid
c)
Meteorite
d)
Meteor
26.
Phobos is a celestial object that orbits Mars and is made mostly of rock. This celestial body is a 
a)
moon
b)
asteroid
c)
planet
d)
meteoroid
27.

Which is true of the dwarf planets?

a)

more massive than nearby objects

b)

never have moons

c)

orbit near the Sun

d)

spherically shaped

28.
Pluto is a dwarf planet that is part of the...
a)
Oort cloud
b)
Kuiper Belt
c)
Moon system of Neptune
29.

This dwarf planet has a heart shaped glacier on it.

a)

Eris

b)

Haumea

c)

Ceres

d)

Pluto

30.

Which dwarf planet has 5 moons?

a)

Eris

b)

Mars

c)

Ceres

d)

Pluto

31.

Orbits: Sun

Shape: Irregular

Composition: Mostly Ice

a)

comet

b)

asteroid

c)

planet

d)

dwarf planet

e)

moon

32.

Orbits: Jupiter

Shape: Round

Appearance: Has Volcanoes on Surface

a)

comet

b)

asteroid

c)

dwarf planet

d)

planet

e)

moon

33.

Orbits: The Sun

Shape: Round

Location: The Kuiper Belt

a)

comet

b)

asteroid

c)

dwarf planet

d)

planet

e)

moon

34.

Orbits: The Sun

Shape: Round

Shares it orbit with 79 moons

a)

comet

b)

asteroid

c)

dwarf planet

d)

planet

e)

moon

35.

Orbits: The Sun

Shape: Like a Potato made of a bunch of boulders

Location: Asteroid Belt

a)

comet

b)

asteroid

c)

dwarf planet

d)

planet

e)

moon

36.

Orbits: The Sun

Shape: Round

Location: Asteroid Belt

a)

comet

b)

asteroid

c)

dwarf planet

d)

planet

e)

moon