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 process of chemical or physical breakdown of earth rocks - soils - and their minerals






2. Volcanoes are also found in __________ - where the denser oceanic plates are forced under continental plates; this adds massive volumes of water to the mantle - allowing magma to melt more readily and rise to the surface to form volcanoes






3. Most sediments were deposited in beds that were originally horizontal - and any tilting is due to later earth movements






4. A major determiner of coastal climate






5. The fossiliferous strata record is only the last __% of the earth's history






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






7. 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






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






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






10. The layers of sediment deposited in a quiet environment - Common sites of deposition are lakes - deltas at the mouths of rivers - beaches and sandbars along the coast - and (most important) the marine environment






11. The Pacific Ring of Fire has examples of volcanoes caused by ___________ coming together






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






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






14. 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






15. Around a new or full moon - when the sun - moon - and the earth form a line - the tidal forces due to the sun reinforce those of the moon - The tide's range is at a maximum and is called a spring tide (spring as in 'to jump/leap -' not the season)






16. Some precipitation falls as ____ and can accumulate as ice caps and glaciers - which can store water for thousands of years






17. Occur along plate boundaries






18. 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






19. - The materials left over after the rock breaks down combine with organic material - The mineral content is determined by the parent material; thus - a soil derived from a single rock type can often be deficient in one or more minerals for good ferti






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






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






22. Method of using the present to interpret the past - Processes occurring today are observed carefully and their effects are measured - Then - geologists assume that similar effects in ancient rocks were caused by processes similar to those of the pres






23. Takes approx. seven and a half earth months to revolve around the sun - Takes approx. eight earth months to rotate on its axis - a day on ________ is longer than a year






24. 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






25. Cirrus - Stratus - Cumulonimbus - Altostratus






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






27. Characterized by similar temperatures and moisture levels






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






29. Sometimes called minor planets or planetoids - Bodies






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






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. 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






33. Runoff and groundwater are stored as ________ in lakes






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






35. 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






36. Forms south of the Arctic and is cold






37. 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






38. Characterized by unusually warm ocean temperatures in the same area - Atlanta tropical cyclone activity is generally enhanced during La Nina - Often follows the El Nino - especially when the latter is strong






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






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






41. 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






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






43. Human civilization has lasted only _____ years






44. Forms over the Tropics and is warm






45. Characterized by unusually warm ocean temperatures in the eastern equatorial Pacific - warm current of nutrient - poor tropical water - heated by its eastward passage in the Equatorial Current - replaces the cold - nutrient - rich surface water of th






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






47. 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






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. 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. 4 terrestrials: Mercury - Venus - Mars - Earth 4 gas giants: Jupiter - Saturn - Uranus - Neptune At least 5 dwarf planets: Ceres - Pluto - Makemake - Haumea - Eris