Test your basic knowledge |

CSET Earth

Subjects : cset, science
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. Some infiltration stays close to the land surface and can seep back into surface - water bodies (and the ocean) as...






2. Occurs at the instant when the sun's position in the sky is at its greatest angular distance on the other side of the equatorial plane from the observer's hemisphere - Depending on the shift of the calendar - the winter solstice occurs some time betw






3. Smooth layers of low clouds that indicate a chance of drizzle or snow






4. Tends to move slowly and is replenished slowly - and so it can remain in aquifers for thousands of years






5. Cause pressure differences - A hot surface heats the air above it and the air expands - lowering the air pressure and its density






6. Occurs when the moon sets at sunset - Then the moon is between the earth and the sun - so we see only the dark half of the moon






7. Natural chemical compounds that are the crystals that make up rocks - Each has a specific composition or narrow range of composition






8. Occur when two plates push together - Such faults are strong and relatively deep - Where the strongest earthquakes occur Example: mountain building in the Himalayas and the Andes






9. The degrees north or south of the equator






10. Sedimentary rocks containing large fragments of other rock material - e.g. Sandstone






11. Formed from calcium carbonate - also an example of chemical sedimentary rocks - like roock salt - can contain organic or once - living matter and can record the history of that matter's formation in features such as strata - fossil evidence - and rip






12. The lateral movement of the plates is typically at speeds of ___ mm annually






13. The result of the buildup of once - living things






14. Spiral - elliptical - and irregular form are speckled throughout the visible universe - Largest telescope has detected galaxies to its limit of several billion light - years






15. Sometimes called minor planets or planetoids - Bodies






16. A natural flow of water - usually freshwater - traveling toward an ocean - a lake - or another stream






17. Air currents move clouds around the globe and cloud particles collide - grow - and fall out of the sky as ________ - Most of it falls back into the oceans or onto land - where the precipitation flows over the ground as surface runoff - portion of run






18. Both gravity and inertia work together to keep planets in orbit around the sun - Inertia makes a planet travel in a straight line






19. At any given time - regardless of season - the Northern and Southern Hemispheres experience...






20. Zero degrees latitude - generally has a tropical climate (warm and wet); at the extreme northern and southern latitudes (polar regions) - the climate is very cold and dry






21. Generally forms deep in the mantle as one type of rock changes into another - Due to intense pressure - can show signs of bending and distortion - Examples: schist - marble - gneiss - and slate






22. Comprised of the crust and the rigid uppermost part of the mantle - broken up into tectonic plates (7 major and many minor) - ride on the asthenosphere






23. Earth movements - The result of forces within the earth - where temperature and pressure differences lead to instability






24. The tidal force produced by the sun is ____ as large as that produced by the moon






25. Giant masses of solid rock that float upon the earth's mantle - These plates move in relation to one another at one of three types of plate boundaries...






26. The outermost part of the earth's interior is made up of two layers...






27. Paleontology: Fossil evidence indicates the similarity of fossils on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean - Continental 'jigsaw puzzle': The outlines of the continents seem to fit together






28. A ______________ - such as the Mid - Atlantic Ridge - has examples of volcanoes caused by divergent tectonic plates pulling apart






29. Seas - gulfs - bays - and other names






30. Scientists theorize that massive volcanic eruptions on a global scale contributed to the earth's cooling - resulting in the onset of the...






31. Some groundwater finds openings in the land surface and emerges as...






32. After the moon has waxed through crescent - quarter - and gibbous phases - a ________ appears - At that time - the moon rises at sunset - and we see all of its illuminated side - Then the phase wanes gradually to another new moon






33. Condensed water vapor that falls to the earth's surface - Most precipitation occurs as rain - but also includes snow - hail - fog drip - graupel - and sleet






34. The strength of gravity in our solar system depends on both the masses of the celestial objects and the _______ between them






35. Water returns to the land surface at __________ than where it entered - under the force of gravity or gravity - induced pressures






36. When the moon is at first quarter or third quarter - the sun - earth and moon form a 90- degree (right) angle with the earth at the vertex - The combined effect of this alignment of the sun - earth - and moon results in tidal ranges on the earth - Wh






37. Younger beds were originally deposited above older beds






38. Continental polar (dry - cold air)






39. Large - scale movements of the earth's lithosphere - - The theory encompasses the older concepts of continental drift (first half of 20th century) and seafloor spreading (1960s)






40. A huge ball of incandescent gases - Its mass is more than 300000 times that of the earth - Principal constituents are the lightest elements - hydrogen and helium






41. The sun is not at the center of the disk - but out toward the perimeter - and is revolving around the ________






42. On maps - the characteristics of an air mass are represented by two letters: The lowercase letter represents ________ - and the uppercase letter represents temperature






43. Texture is important in classifying ______ sedimentary rocks






44. Defined by geometrically subdividing the earth's spheroid into 24 lunes (wedge - shaped sections) - bordered by meridians - each 15






45. Huge systems of stars - Milky Way is estimated to have 100 billion stars arranged in a great disk






46. Forms south of the Arctic and is cold






47. Two types of mountains are formed - depending on how the rock reacts to the tectonic forces






48. Under solar conditions - gases are undergoing _____ to heavier elements with the increase of prodigious quantities of energy






49. Sun heats water in the oceans - Water evaporates as vapor into the air - Ice and snow can sublimate directly into water vapor...- Over time - the water reenters the ocean - where the water cycle started






50. Volcanoes can be caused by '____________'; these so - called hotspots - as in Hawaii - can occur far from plate boundaries