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. The breakdown of rocks - soils and minerals through atmospheric chemicals or biologically produced chemicals (also known as biological weathering)






2. Form when dissolved mineral solutions crystalize out of lakes and oceans






3. A small Solar System body that orbits the Sun - When close enough to the sun - exhibits a visible coma (atmosphere) or a tail - both primarily from the effects of solar radiation upon the comet's nucleus - Have a variety of different orbital periods






4. Forms south of the Arctic and is cold






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






6. Affected by factors such as weathering and impurities






7. An individual weighing 200 lbs on Earth would weigh more on a _______________ - Weight is a function of gravity






8. The rising of the earth's ocean surface caused by the tidal forces of the moon and the sun acting on the oceans






9. Human civilization has lasted only _____ years






10. Darkens the moon as the earth passes between it and the sun - casting a shadow on the moon - may be seen from anywhere the moon is visible - about half of the earth






11. The evaporation of these oceans is how we get most of our __________ - and their temperature determines our climate and wind patterns






12. Precipitation - Canopy interception - Snowmelt - Runoff - Percolation - Subsurface flow- Evaporation - Sublimation - Condensation






13. 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






14. The atmosphere is a __________ - and so small changes to one part of the system can grow to have large effects on the system as a whole - This makes it difficult to accurately predict weather more than a few days in advance






15. Loose collections of ice - dust - and small rocky particles - measuring a few kilometers or tens of kilometers across






16. Common: wind - clouds - rain - snow - fog - dust storms - Less common: natural disasters such as tornadoes - hurricanes - and ice storms






17. Solar Atmosphere is divided into the inner chromosphere with explosive prominences and the outer corona - a glowing halo visible only during a total eclipse - Constantly emitting particles as a...






18. Result from the earth's axis being tilted to its orbital plane - NOT the result of the variation in the earth's distance to the sun (Because of its elliptical orbit - the earth as a whole is slightly warmer when away from the sun; this is because the






19. Some infiltration stays close to the land surface and can seep back into surface - water bodies (and the ocean) as...






20. Occur when two plates slip past each other - Such faults are generally moderate and are relatively shallow Example: The San Andreas Fault






21. The tendency of a moving object to stay in a straight line or a stationary object to remain in place - Without _______ - a planet would be pulled into the sun






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






23. Comprises one global - interconnected body of salt water often (though generally recognized as several separate oceans) - A continuous body of water with relatively free interchange among its parts






24. Characterized by similar temperatures and moisture levels






25. 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






26. The North Pole is in the Arctic Ocean - and thus its temperature extremes are buffered by the water - The result is that the South Pole is consistently _______ during the southern winter than the North Pole during the northern winter






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






28. Deviates by an angle of approximately 23.5 degrees - Thus - at any given time during summer or winter - one part of the planet is more directly exposed to the rays of the sun - This exposure alternates as the earth revolves in its orbit






29. The movement of rainwater as it filters through soil and rocks into the ground - becoming groundwater






30. The degrees east or west of the prime meridian through Greenwich - England






31. Due to a combination of differential heating and geometry - hen the sun rises - it is the tops of the mountain peaks which receive first light - and as the day progresses - the mountain slopes take on a greater heat load than the valleys - This resul






32. Can influence climate by sending tremendous volumes of dust - ash - and smoke into the atmosphere






33. Nearest galaxy - about 20 million light - years away






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






35. Believed to originate at a much greater distance from the Sun - in a cloud (the Oort cloud) consisting of debris left over from the condensation of solar nebula - Comets are thrown from the outer planets or nearby stars - or as a result of collisions






36. Runoff and groundwater are stored as ________ in lakes






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






38. Not all runoff flows into rivers; much of it infiltrates into the ground through...






39. 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






40. Used to arrange strata in a standard order - Used to measure the amount of radioactive decay in minerals and calculate the time at which the rock formed






41. The state change where a solid (ice or snow) changes directly to a gas (water vapor)






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






43. Almost all familiar weather phenomena occur in the __________ (the lower part of the atmosphere)






44. Maritime polar (wet - cold air)






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






46. Texture is important in classifying ______ sedimentary rocks






47. There are approx. _____ days between each lunar cycle






48. Faulting and folding






49. A land form that stretches above the surrounding land in a limited area - with a peak - Usually produced by the movement of lithospheric plates






50. Oceans cover __ of the earth's surface