Toss-ups

 

1.                Derived in part from the Latin for “layer,” this level of the atmosphere is a warm region.  The warming is due to the absorption of ultra-violet light by ozone molecules in the ozone layer.  What is this layer, in which jets fly?

 

Answer: Stratosphere

 

2.                Duration of volcanic and tectonic activity and amount of atmosphere (and thus erosion) are all largely set by this formation property, which also governs the surface gravity of the planet.

 

Answer: size

 

3.                Stars in the Milky Way… Sunspots… Lunar mare… Phases of Venus… Rings of Saturn…Moons of Jupiter.  All of these were first observed through the telescope by this Italian scientist.

 

Answer: Galileo Galilei

 

4.                While eggs to not stand straight up on this day, the Sun does rise due east and set due west.  The Sun is also straight overhead on the equator.  FAQTP, what is this day called, when the length of the day and night are equal?

 

Answer: Equinox

 

5.                One researcher wants to call these planets “Ice Giants” because they are apparently much more core than gas envelope.  Luckily, they are the right color for this moniker, both a bluish shade.  What are these two planets, 7th and 8th from the Sun?

 

Answer: Uranus and Neptune

 

6.                The Moon’s is 0.07, the Earth’s is 0.03 and Venus’s in 0.8.  For a quick 10 points, what is this quantity, which measures how much light each planet reflects.

 

Answer: Albedo

 

7.                Although it took spacecraft visits to locate some of these features, all giant planets have them, while none of the terrestrial worlds do.  In some cases, they are little more than clouds of dust, but in others they are composted of billions of chunks of ice in orbit.  What are these annular giant planet decorations, of which Saturn’s is the most famous and impressive?

 

Answer: rings

 

8.                For a quick ten points, tell me what phase a human on Earth would see if an astronaut on the Moon were seeing a new earth in his sky.

 

Answer: Full

 

9.                 Named for a Greek maiden seduced by Zeus then turned into a cow, this moon of Jupiter is the innermost of the Galilean satellites.  For ten points, name this moon, which is the most volcanically active body in the solar system.

 

Answer: Io

 

10.           Kepler, Copernicus and Tycho are names of ones on the Moon.  Earth has them in the Yucatan, Canada and, most famously, in Arizona.  What are these geologic features, appearing on all terrestrial worlds.

 

Answer: Impact Craters

 

11.           This force which makes objects appear to curve as they move north or south isn’t really a force at all, but rather the result of observing objects move on a rotating planet.  What is this force, which does not make toilets flush counter-clockwise?

 

Answer: Coriolis Force

 

12.            Rapid rotation… Electrically conducting interior… fluid interior which is convecting.  These three things are thought to be necessary for a planet to have a this, which keeps our compasses pointed north.

 

Answer: Magnetic Field or Magnetosphere

 

13.           Because of this process, we know that the lunar mare are younger than the lunar highlands.  What is this geological process, which is caused by small debris, comets and asteroids striking planets?

 

Answer: Impact Cratering

 

14.           Ozone… Sulfur dioxide… methane… water vapor…carbon dioxide. These four gasses are all responsible for this process, which makes planets warmer.

 

Answer: Greenhouse Effect

 

15.           Gravitational… thermal… nuclear… chemical… radiation… kinetic.  These are all forms of this, which allows us to do work.

 

Answer: Energy

 

16.           Objects moving towards us appear bluer, while objects moving away appear redder.  FAQTP, what is the effect which allows us to detect extrasolar planets?

 

Answer: Doppler Effect

 

17.           Inside of this line, only rocks and metals could condense out of the planetary disk around the proto-Sun.  Outside of it, ices could condense, forming giant planet cores.  What is this line at about 5 AU called, named for the solid form of water?

 

Answer: Frost or Snow line.

 

18.           Atmospheric cratering … condensation … chemical reactions … bombardment… thermal escape.  These are all processes that do this to a planet’s atmosphere.

 

Answer: Loss processes

 

19.           Planets orbit in elliptical orbits with the Sun at one focus.  A line from the planet to the Sun sweeps out equal areas in equal times.  Period squared is equal to semi-major axis cubed.  These are whose three laws?

 

Answer: Kepler’s

 

20.           Because of this force, most moons keep one face towards their planets.  It also causes Io to be volcanically active despite is small size.  For ten point, name this force which causes the ocean to move in and out at the seacoast.

 

Answer: Tides

 

21.           Wrinkle ridges on Venus are the result of this geological process, as are the Himalayas on Earth.  For ten points, name this process which also causes earthquakes in California.

 

Answer: Tectonics

 

22.           Valles Marineris is it’s longest feature.  Although the Tharsis volcanoes are large, Olympus Mons is its largest volcano.  What is this red planet, which might have once had water in the Northern hemisphere?

 

Answer: Mars

 

23.           Some can be found in the Edgeworth-Kuiper Belt.  Others can be found in the Oort cloud.  For then points, what are these  icey bodies which are often seen in our skies with glorious tails.

 

Answer: Comets

 

24.           Low densities… Far from the Sun… Cooler… many moons… rings… For ten points, what are these large planets with no solid surfaces?

 

Answer: Jovian planets