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Quiz Chapter 13: Meteoroid, Asteroid, Comet

10 questions · Form 2 Science Bab 13: Meteoroid, Asteroid, Comet

10 questions · plays in fullscreen

Full Question List & Answer Key

Prefer reading to quizzing? All 10 questions are listed below with the answer and explanation under each one.

1. In which direction does a comet's tail ALWAYS point as it orbits near the Sun?

  1. Directly toward the Sun
  2. Directly away from the Sun
  3. Perpendicular to its orbital path
  4. In the exact direction of its forward travel
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Answer: B

Solar wind and radiation pressure push gas and dust particles away from the Sun, making the comet's tail always point directly away from the Sun.

2. Where is the primary Asteroid Belt located in our Solar System?

  1. Between Earth and Mars
  2. Between Mars and Jupiter
  3. Between Jupiter and Saturn
  4. Beyond Neptune in the Kuiper Belt
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Answer: B

The Asteroid Belt is located in the region between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.

3. What causes a meteor to glow intensely as it moves through Earth's atmosphere?

  1. Nuclear reactions in the meteoroid core
  2. Extreme friction between the meteoroid and atmospheric gas molecules
  3. Reflection of bright moonlight
  4. Chemical reaction with greenhouse gases
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Answer: B

Moving at extreme speeds, friction between the meteoroid and air molecules converts kinetic energy into high heat, causing gas and rock particles to glow.

4. What primary materials compose a comet?

  1. Molten iron and nickel alloy
  2. Frozen gases, ice, dust, and rocky material
  3. Pure liquid hydrogen
  4. Dense uranium mineral rock
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Answer: B

Comets are composed of frozen gases (water ice, methane, ammonia, carbon dioxide), dust, and rocky debris.

5. How are asteroids fundamentally different from meteoroids?

  1. Asteroids are made of ice, while meteoroids are made of gas
  2. Asteroids are significantly larger rocky bodies, whereas meteoroids are smaller fragments
  3. Asteroids only exist outside the Solar System
  4. Meteoroids have their own moons, while asteroids do not
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Answer: B

Asteroids are much larger rocky/metallic minor planets (meters to hundreds of km wide), while meteoroids are small fragments (pebbles up to ~10 m).

6. What is a meteoroid called after it enters Earth's atmosphere and burns up, creating a streak of light?

  1. Meteorite
  2. Meteor
  3. Asteroid
  4. Comet
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Answer: B

When a meteoroid enters Earth's atmosphere and burns due to air friction, the visible streak of light produced is called a meteor.

7. What term describes a space rock that survives passage through Earth's atmosphere and strikes the ground?

  1. Meteor
  2. Meteorite
  3. Asteroid
  4. Tektite
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Answer: B

A meteorite is the remnant of a meteoroid that survives its passage through the atmosphere and impacts Earth's surface.

8. What feature is formed on Earth's crust when a large meteorite strikes the ground at hypervelocity?

  1. Volcanic caldera
  2. Impact crater
  3. Coral reef
  4. Tectonic rift valley
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Answer: B

Hypervelocity meteorite collisions blast away surface rock, excavating a bowl-shaped impact crater.

9. Why do meteor showers occur periodically on Earth?

  1. Earth passes through trails of dust debris left behind by comets in its orbital path
  2. The Moon ejects volcanic rocks towards Earth at set dates
  3. Solar flares blast heavy metal ions into Earth's polar region
  4. Satellites burn up simultaneously in orbit
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Answer: A

Meteor showers occur when Earth intersects the orbital stream of dust particles left behind along a comet's historical trail.

10. Which atmospheric layer protects Earth by burning up the majority of small incoming meteoroids?

  1. Troposphere
  2. Stratosphere
  3. Mesosphere
  4. Exosphere
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Answer: C

Most meteoroids disintegrate due to intense atmospheric friction within the mesosphere (50 to 85 km above Earth's surface).

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