Asteroids, Meteoroids, and Meteorites

1. The largest asteroid has a diameter of roughly

a. 10 km

b. 100 km

c. 1,000 km*

d. 10,000 km

e. 100,000 km

2. The major factor which might have kept the material which formed the asteroids from not forming a planet was probably tidal effects from

a. the Sun

b. Mars

c. Jupiter*

d. Saturn

3. Most of the asteroids orbit the sun in a belt between the orbits of

a. Mercury and Venus.

b. Venus and Earth.

c. Earth and Mars.

d. Mars and Jupiter. *

e. Jupiter and Saturn.

4. An asteroid could produce an iron core and a silicate mantle if it

a. differentiated. *

b. outgassed.

c. condensed.

d. accreted.

e. sublimed.

5. A meteor is

a. a rock or grain of sand passing through the Earth's atmosphere

b. the trail left by a rock or piece of sand as it passes through the Earth's atmosphere*

c. a rock often found in a museum

d. a solar wind particle trapped in the Earth's magnetic field.

6. A meteorite is

a. a rock or grain of sand passing through the Earth's atmosphere

b. the trail left by a rock or piece of sand as it passes through the Earth's atmosphere

c. a rock from space that strikes the ground*

d. all the above.

7. Meteorites are composed of

a. hydrogen ices

b. helium ices

c. heavy elements like silicon*

d. all the above

e. none of the above.

8. Which type of meteorite are you LEAST likely to be able to identify as being genuinely extraterrestrial?

a. stony *

b. nickel-iron

c. carbonaceous chondrite

d. none of these

9. The iron meteorites

a. represent the largest number of falls.

b. are only found in the Antarctic.

c. are composed of carbonaceous chondrites.

d. are responsible for most of the meteor craters on the surface of the moon.

e. appear to have formed in the interiors of molten planetesimals. *

10. Meteorites can be classified according to their

a. orbit.

b. distance from the sun.

c. impact history.

d. mineral content.*

e. coma.

11. What is the relation of meteoroids and asteroids?
They may be the same except for

a. color.

b. composition.

c. temperature.

d. size.*

e. None of these.

12. Why do most meteors not reach the surface of the Earth?

a. Their orbits are too eccentric.

b. They burn up in the atmosphere.*

c. They become trapped in the Van Allen belts.

d. They go into orbit around the Earth.

e. None of these.

13. Why do some meteor showers last only a day while others can last several weeks?
The duration of meteor showers depends on

a. the size of the mother comet.

b. the extent of the debris in space.*

c. the velocity of the solar wind.

d. the position of the Earth in its orbit.

e. None of these.