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 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






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






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






4. The major mountains tend to occur in __________ - indicating tectonic plate boundaries and activity






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






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






7. The variety of ways by which water moves across the land - This includes both surface runoff and channel runoff - As it flows - the water may percolate into the ground - evaporate into the air - become stored in lakes or reservoirs - or be extracted






8. The earth is believed to be about ___ billion years old






9. 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...






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






11. The stress is particularly severe in _________ - which are characterized by volcanism - metamorphism - deformation - and uplift






12. Theory that the earth's continents were originally united as a supercontinent - Pangaea - Established by Alfred Wegener in the early 1900s






13. 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






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






15. 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






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






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






18. 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






19. Some isolated mountains were produced by volcanoes - including many apparently ________ that reach a great height above the ocean floor






20. The center of the sun may have a temperature of millions of degrees; the visible surface - the ______ - is about 6000






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






22. Less than 1% of the earth; this relatively thin zone (5 to 25 miles) contains the only rocks we can study - even in the deepest mines or drill holes






23. Continental tropical (dry - warm air)






24. 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






25. A warm - water current that carries warm water from the Tropics to the Arctic regions of the North Atlantic Ocean - This accounts for higher temperatures and higher humidity on the Eastern Seaboard during the summer






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






27. Evaporation often implicitly includes ___________ from plants - although together they are specifically referred to as evapotranspiration






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






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






30. Travels in an orbit that is slightly elliptical (oval) - and so the distance from the sun ranges from 91.5 to 94.5 million miles - Its daily rotation deforms the earth to a flattened spheroid - with a polar radius slightly less than the equatorial ra






31. The flow of water underground - in the vadose zone and aquifers - Subsurface water may return to the surface (as a spring or by being pumped) or eventually seep into the oceans






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






33. The precipitation that is intercepted by plant foliage and eventually evaporates back to the atmosphere rather than falling to the ground






34. Rocks are placed into groups according to how they form...






35. Can thaw and melt - and the ensuing water flows overland as snowmelt






36. Erosion in many places is increased by human land use - Poor land - use practices include deforestation - overgrazing - unmanaged construction activity - and road building






37. Improved land - use practices can limit erosion by using techniques such as...






38. 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






39. Two high waters and two low waters each day - in most locations - tides are semidiurnal






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






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






42. Piled in waves and indicate rain or snow






43. 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






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






45. 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...






46. Characterized by similar temperatures and moisture levels






47. Occur when two plates pull away from each other - Such faults are generally weak and shallow Example: the Mid - Atlantic Range in the Atlantic Ocean






48. 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






49. Travels around the earth each month - - Distance from the earth averages 237000 miles - Has rugged topography formed billions of years ago by volcanic eruptions and meteorite impacts - Mass is 1/6th that of Earth






50. Weather occurs primarily due to density (temperature and moisture) differences between one location and another - These differences can occur due to the angle of the sun at any particular spot - which varies by latitude from the tropics