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Planets Moons and Rings > Exam 2 > Flashcards

Exam 2 Flashcards

1
Q

Mercury Terrain

A

Heavily cratered, inter-crater plains, scarps, caloris basin, smooth plains, antipodal (opposite side) “weird terrain”

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2
Q

MESSENGER

A

Visited Mercury, shows huge partly liquid core, maybe ice deposits at poles

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3
Q

Venus Terrain

A

Highlands and lowlands… was there a giant cataclysm 500 million years ago? or was it resurfaced some other way?

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4
Q

Venus Geological Activities

A

Volcanoes include shields, domes, and pancakes (different lava viscosity).
No evidence of plate tectonics, but local tectonic features

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5
Q

Venus future exploration

A

Fly or land, take pictures, sample rocks, look for venus quakes

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6
Q

Mars Terrain

A

cratered south and volcanic north, Giant canyons (Valles Marineris)

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7
Q

Mars Geological activities

A

Giant volcanos (Olympus Mons). Tectonic extensions created Valles Marineris.

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8
Q

Mars evidence of past water

A

rampart craters, dendritic channels, tear-shaped islands, deltas, gullies

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9
Q

Mars atmosphere

A

early thick atmosphere provided greenhouse, but now it is lost (giant impact? stalled tectonics, or solar wind stripping because mag field left when core froze)

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10
Q

MER

A

aquatic minerals, multiple stages of wet dry; bluberries

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11
Q

Phoenix

A

excavated ice under surface, plygon surface shows freeze-thaw cycle

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12
Q

MSL

A

shows gravel bed (stream beds), conglomerates

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13
Q

Life on Mars

A

None apparent yet

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14
Q

Where to look for life on other planets

A

Follow the water, methane gas (possible bio-signature), Look for fossils in hot springs or lakebeds or permafrost

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15
Q

Planetary Protection

A

Protect mars from earth contamination or vice versa

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16
Q

Comparitive Planetology

A
  • suffered late heavy bombardment,
  • early stage of basaltic volcanism,
  • smaller planets have cooled and are now geologically dead.
  • Maria indistinguishable (moon, mercury, mars)
  • venus, earth were similar when life arose
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17
Q

How many worlds orbit the Jovian planets?

A

more than 170

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18
Q

What makes the jovian moons active?

A

Tides and orbital resonances

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19
Q

What moons have erupted water?

A

Europa, Ganymede, Enceledus

20
Q

What causes Jovial moon volcanic activity

A

Orbital resonances -> elliptical orbit -> tital heating -> volcanoes

21
Q

Where to look for life on jovial moons?

A

Underground oceans… most like earth conditions

22
Q

How many moons does saturn have?

23
Q

What is the source of Saturn’s E ring

A

Enceladus erruptions

24
Q

What might have been captured from the Kuiper Belt?

25
Titan
- methane clouds, rain, streams, lakes - Nitrogen atmosphere (1.5 bar) - Underground reservoirs and aquifers - Too cold for life as we know it (but may be like early earth) - surface dunes and intermittent streams
26
How many moons does uranus have?
21
27
Miranda
Uranus - Cliffs indicate reassembled satellites
28
Cordelia and Ophelia
Uranus - sheppard the largest Uranian ring
29
Triton
Neptune - retrograde orbit, likely captured | Cantaloup terrain, flood plane, wind streaks
30
Icy Satellites
Active because of tides, ice melts easier than rock | Rocky cores with icy (liquid?) mantels, Icy cratered crust
31
Volcanically active moons
Io, Enceladus, Triton
32
circumference of sphere
2(pi)R
33
surface area of sphere
4(pi)R^2
34
single plate tectonic resurfacing time eq
T = circumference / rate
35
multiple plate tectonic resurfacing time eq
T = circumference / (number of plates * rate)
36
Volcanic resurfacing rate equation
R = num of volc * rate / surfarea
37
Why is permanent polar cap a good place to look for life?
it is made of water/ice
38
Why is under the surface a good place to look for life?
Permafrost is a water source
39
Why ar Geothermal Areas a good place to look for life?
Can melt ice to make water
40
Why are Ancient streams and lake beds a good place to look for life?
Were once wet, look for fossils
41
Pressure equation
P = Mass * g / Surfarea
42
density of water
1g/cm^3 (or 100kg/m)
43
Bar to STI
1 Bar = 1kg/(s^2 * m)
44
Mariner
channels, rampart craters
45
Viking
water frost on cold mornings, permanent H20 cap
46
Mars Pathfinder
tumbled rocks
47
Mars global surveyor
gullies, channels

Planets Moons and Rings (3 decks)

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