Transcript a. The visible surface of the sun is called the photosphere. b. Solar

Earth Science Review Questions
1. Which historical model of the solar system best matches
what we know today?
a.
b.
c.
d.
geocentric model
heliocentric model
ptolemaic model
newtonian model
2. Which of the following statements about the Sun is
CORRECT?
a. The visible surface of the sun is called the photosphere.
b. Solar flares stream out into space and are absorbed by our
Earth’s magnetic field.
c. When our Sun dies it will first become a red-giant and then
collapse into a white dwarf.
d. Blackholes are made when small stars die.
3. Which of the following best describes the nebular
theory?
a. Earth was produced when lighter particles surrounding a
nebular cloud gathered together.
b. The Sun was made when many planetesimals collided.
c. The collapsing sun formed a supernova that exploded to
form the planets.
d. A spinning nebular cloud collapsed into itself to form the
sun and the planets were formed from collisions of outer debris.
4. The seasons of Earth are produced by
a.
b.
c.
d.
the rotation of Earth as it relates to the Sun.
the revolution of Earth as it relates to the Sun.
the tilt of the Earth as it relates to the Sun.
the position of the Earth in its orbit as it relates to the Sun.
5. An astronomer noticed that she could only see a slice of
the right side of the Moon but noticed it was larger than
usual as she viewed it through her telescope on a starry
night. Which of the following best describes what she was
seeing?
a.
b.
c.
d.
She saw a first quarter moon during perihelion.
She saw a waxing crescent moon during apogee.
She saw a waxing crescent moon during perigee.
She saw a waning crescent moon during perigee.
6. Which of the following is a FALSE statement?
a. Earth exhibits nutation within its precession along its plane
of the eliptic.
b. When the Moon moves between the Earth and the Sun, we
have an event called a solar eclipse.
c. A crater can be distinguished from a caldera by the presence
of smaller uplifted rock in the center.
d. The highlands of the moon are accented by the regolith
which are believed to be ancient beds of lava.
7. Earth has been changing and developing for many years.
Which of the following is CORRECT about the evolution of
Earth?
a. Earth was formed about 4.6 billion years ago as a very cold,
inactive planet.
b. The atmosphere on early Earth consisted of methane,
carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and oxygen.
c. Alfred Wegner’s evidence of continental drift included the
Pangaea puzzle, continuous species, and continuous mountain ranges
and climates.
d. The movement of earthquake centers deeper and more
inland at plate boundaries is evidence of the theory of natural
selection.
8. Look at the illustration below. Which of the following
statements best describes this type of boundary?
a. The illustration above shows a subduction zone.
b. The illustration above shows an area where few volcanoes or
earthquakes would occur.
c. The illustration above shows the process of a transform fault.
d. The illustration above shows a divergent boundary.
9. Refer to the illustration shown below. Which of the
following statements is CORRECT?
a. The illustration shows rocks that are older are near the
center and younger near the continental edges.
b. The illustration shows sea-floor spreading which is
decreasing the width of the Atlantic Ocean.
c. The illustration shows evidence of magnetic reversal which is
the periodic flipping of the magnetic poles.
d. The illustration shows layering of soil in a process called
sedimentation.
10. How were the Himalayan Mountains formed?
a. The Himalayas were formed by Karst topography processes.
b. The Himalayas were formed when India subducted beneath
the Eurasian plate.
c. The Himalayas were formed when the Pacific plate
subducted beneath the North American plate.
d. The Himalayas were formed when two continental plates
crashed into each other and neither subducted.
11. Which of the following best describes relative and/or
absolute dating processes.
a. Relative dating is the use of the Law of Relativity in
determining ages of rocks.
b. Absolute dating dates only fossils formed within the last
10,000 years.
c. Relative dating uses Carbon-dating for layers older than
5,000 years.
d. Relative dating compares one layer to another while
absolute dating provides a more exact date.
12. According to the Laws of Superposition and
Horizontality and the Principle of Cross-Cutting
Relationships, which of the following layers is the youngest?
A
B
C
D
13. Layers of soil are laid down in many ways. Which of the
following ways would be LEAST likely to contain fossils?
a.
b.
c.
d.
layer put down by falling ash from a volcano eruption
layer put down by flowing lava from a volcano eruption
layer put down by settling of a dust cloud
layer put down by the influx of a large body of water
14. A geologist found the following rock outcropping when
a new road was built in his neighborhood. Which of the
following would he be able to determine from applying the
laws of superposition and horizontality?
a. That the layers were originally
vertical.
b. The original height of the
deformed layers.
c. That the uppermost layer was
deposited before the other
layers were deformed.
d. That erosion occurred before
the uppermost layer was
deposited.
15. Charles Darwin did not invent evolution but he did
discover the mechanism for it. The best definition for
evolution would be
a. Change over time by natural selection.
b. Change over time by uniformitarianism.
c. Change of species from smaller to larger.
d. The fact that all humans come from monkeys.
16. What is the current geological era?
a. Cenozoic
b. Jurassic
c. Quaternary
d. Holocene
17. Only a few organisms have the chance to become
fossilized. Which of the following would most likely be
preserved?
a. slug that dies in an ash storm
b. leaves of a palm tree that are blown into the ocean
c. worm that died in a flood
d. mouse that died in a mudslide
18. Look at the following four sections of Earth. Which of
the fossils (A, B, C, or D) would be considered an index
fossil?
19. What is the name of the oldest fossils on Earth that
existed about 2.7 billion years ago?
a. dinosaurs
b. archeostiths
c. stromatolites
d. archaebacteria
20. Many anatomical structures are amazingly similar.
What are the similar structures below called?
a. vestigial structures
b. homologous structures
c. embroyological structures
d. heterogenous structures
21. Comparative embryology is based upon what primary
concept?
a. The development of the embryo tells the story of the
evolution of that species.
b. The embryo from one organism is vastly different from the
embryo of another organism.
c. People all have tails and gills.
d. Species that are in the same family will have the same
development.
22. Which of the following is NOT a major point of Darwin’s
theory of natural selection?
a.
b.
c.
d.
overproduction
competition
variation
environment
23. What is the class for the human species?
a.
b.
c.
d.
Animalia
Chordata
Mammalia
Primates
24. Ice ages are characterized by
a. hot summers followed by colder than normal winters.
b. a drop in average annual temperature to at least five
degrees below normal.
c. decreased snowfall.
d. nearly all of the Earth covered in glaciers.
25. Milankovitch proposed a set of events involving Earth
that he believed contributed to the causes of an ice age.
Which of the following was NOT one of his conditions?
a.
b.
c.
d.
changes in Earth’s orbit
changes in the degree of Earth’s tilt
Earth’s precession
Earth’s rotation
26. Which of the following is NOT happening to our Earth?
a.
b.
c.
d.
Sea level is rising.
Global average temperatures are increasing.
World ocean is becoming more acidic.
Ozone layer is decreasing.
27. What threat to the environment is the most direct cause
of extinctions?
a.
b.
c.
d.
greenhouse effect
air pollution
burning fossil fuels
habitat destruction
28. Which of the following environmental problems is
CORRECTLY matched with its primary cause?
a.
b.
c.
d.
acid rain; turbidity
ozone depletion; carbon dioxide
soil depletion; CFCs
water pollution; heat
29. Which of the following is FALSE regarding global
warming?
a. Greenhouse gases are necessary to keep Earth warm,
however burning fossil fuels is increasing the concentrations of
greenhouse gases.
b. Earth is now 1-2 degrees warmer than normal.
c. The difference between current temperatures and the last
ice age is only 5 degrees Celcius.
d. At the current rate of increase, global temperatures will
increase only 1 degree by 2100.
30. What is the chemical name for the fossil fuels like
gasoline and oil?
a.
b.
c.
d.
methane
gasohol
hydrocarbons
megacarbons
31. Which of the following is the correct order of layers of
the atmosphere from the Earth outward toward space?
a.
b.
c.
d.
troposphere, mesosphere, stratosphere, thermosphere
ionosphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, troposphere
troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, ionosphere
troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere, thermosphere
32. Which of the following statements regarding the gases
in our atmosphere is CORRECT?
a. Earth’s atmosphere consists mostly of oxygen, although
nitrogen is plentiful.
b. Oxygen cycles through the atmosphere from plants to
animals as carbon dioxide.
c. Nitrogen enters the ground and is adapted for plant use by
nitrogen-fixing bacteria.
d. Nitrogen is returned to the atmosphere by decomposer
mushrooms.
33. Water is an important molecule both within our Earth
and in the Earth’s atmosphere. Which of the following
statements is CORRECT regarding how water changes?
a. Water vapor becomes solid water through a process called
decomposition.
b. Liquid water becomes solid water through a process called
flashing.
c. Solid water becomes water vapor through a process called
sublimation.
d. Water vapor becomes liquid water through a process called
evaporation.
34. Relative humidity is reported daily by meteorologists.
Which of the following is the best definition of relative
humidity?
a. Relative humidity is the amount of water in the air.
b. Relative humidity is the amount of air mixed with the
amount of water.
c. Relative humidity is the percentage of water in a certain
amount of air.
d. Relative humidity is the amount of water in the air
compared with the amount of water the air can hold.
35. Which of the following weather conditions is produced
when snow falls through a temperature inversion?
a.
b.
c.
d.
hail
rain
sleet
snow
36. Rain drops are enlarged in clouds by the process called
a.
b.
c.
d.
coalescence.
evaporation.
correlation.
sublimation.
37. Which of the following is NOT a requirement for the
formation and maintenance of a hurricane?
a.
b.
c.
d.
warm ocean water
colliding winds
upward flow of air from a central point
strong winds to push the hurricane along
38. The layers of the Earth from center outward are
a.
b.
c.
d.
inner core, outer core, magma chamber, crust
core, mantle, crust
inner core, outer core, magmasphere, crust
inner core, outer core, mantle, crust
39. The lithosphere is best described as
a. a thick layer of Earth that includes all of the mantle and crust.
b. a thin layer of Earth that includes only the upper mantle and crust.
c. a thick layer of Earth that includes only continental and oceanic
crust.
d. a thin layer of magma beneath the crust.
40. Continental plates and oceanic plates both float on top
of a layer of moving magma. Each plate exhibits a certain
amount of isostasy depending on
a. the balance between the weight of the plate and the
buoyant force of the mantle.
b. the balance of motion due to slab pull and ridge push.
c. the circulation of magma from surface to core.
d. the amount of the plate that rises above the water.