Explorations: Introduction to Astronomy (Arny), 6th Edition

Chapter 7: The Moon

Online Quiz

1
The Moon is about one-quarter the diameter of the Earth. How does its mass compare?
A)The Moon is 1/4th as massive as Earth.
B)The Moon is 1/6th as massive as Earth.
C)The Moon is 1/32nd as massive as Earth.
D)The Moon is 1/81st as massive as Earth.
2
The large dark areas on the Moon that form the face of the "Man in the Moon" are called what?
A)craters and rays
B)rilles
C)maria
D)all of the above
3
Craters form when _________.
A)lunar volcanoes blow their tops
B)solid bodies such as asteroids strike the Moon's surface.
C)pieces of the Moon fall off, leaving holes in its surface.
D)Both a and c.
4
What we call the Moon's surface layer?
A)regolith
B)rilles
C)maria
D)craters
5
What are rays?
A)Canyons, caused by lava flows or crustal cracking.
B)Long, light streaks of pulverized rock radiating outward from craters.
C)Mountainous regions.
D)Areas with no craters at all.
6
The lunar highlands have more craters than the maria because __________.
A)the surface of the maria is liquid and craters quickly disappear there.
B)the material composing the highlands is very soft and easily cratered.
C)the maria are much younger than the highlands.
D)the maria are much older than the highlands.
7
How were the maria formed?
A)Maria were formed by ancient oceans on the Moon's surface.
B)Maria formed from ash falls from long dead volcanoes.
C)Molten rock from the Moon's interior flooded the huge basins after large impacts.
D)They were formed by the huge tidal interaction between the Earth and Moon.
8
Why doesn't the Moon have an atmosphere?
A)It never had volcanoes and the gravity is too weak to hold a substantial atmosphere.
B)The blasts that formed the craters blew it away.
C)The Moon's atmosphere was drawn away from it by Earth's stronger gravitational force.
D)The solar wind evaporated the Moon's atmosphere.
9
Why is the Moon's surface cratered but the Earth's not?
A)The Moon's stronger magnetic field attracted more iron asteroids.
B)Meteors bounce off the Earth's atmosphere.
C)Earth's impact craters have been mostly obliterated by erosion and plate tectonics.
D)When the dinosaurs died, their remains filled all the Earth's craters.
10
How do most astronomers today believe the Moon formed?
A)The Moon is actually a planet that was drawn in and captured by the Earth's gravitational force.
B)The Earth and Moon formed together as twin planets.
C)A Mars-sized object struck the young Earth, and the ejected debris formed the Moon.
D)The Moon is a piece of the Earth that broke off while the Earth was forming.
11
If there is a high tide at noon, about when can you expect the next low tide?
A)at about 3 pm.
B)at about 6 pm.
C)around 9 pm.
D)at about midnight.
12
What causes a solar eclipse?
A)The shadow of the Earth falls on the Moon.
B)The shadow of the Moon falls on the Sun.
C)The shadow of the Moon falls on the Earth.
D)The shadow of the Earth falls on the Sun.
13
What causes a lunar eclipse?
A)The shadow of the Earth falls on the Moon.
B)The shadow of the Moon falls on the Sun.
C)The shadow of the Moon falls on the Earth.
D)The shadow of the Earth falls on the Sun.
14
Why aren't there eclipses each month?
A)There are eclipses every month.
B)Eclipses occur only on the equinoxes.
C)Eclipses occur only on the solstices.
D)The Moon's orbit is tilted with respect to the Earth's orbit around the Sun.
15
Why does the eclipsed Moon sometimes appear a ruddy red color?
A)The lunar atmosphere filters out all the light except red.
B)It is an effect of the filters astronomers use to observe the eclipse.
C)Some sunlight is bent by refraction in our atmosphere so that it falls on the Moon. Our atmosphere absorbs much of the blue in that light, so that mainly red colors remain to reach the Moon.
D)Both A and C
Glencoe Online Learning CenterScience HomeProduct InfoSite MapContact Us

The McGraw-Hill CompaniesGlencoe

Please read our Terms of Use and Privacy Notice before you explore our Web site. To report a technical problem with this Web site, please contact the Web Producer.