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. Tides may be...






3. Forms over water and is associated with wet air






4. The source of energy for evaporation is primarily through ___________






5. The science of the atmosphere and weather






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






7. 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






8. Piled in waves and indicate rain or snow






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






10. 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






11. 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






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






13. Hotspot volcanoes are also found elsewhere in the Solar System - especially on...






14. 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






15. 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






16. 4 terrestrials: Mercury - Venus - Mars - Earth 4 gas giants: Jupiter - Saturn - Uranus - Neptune At least 5 dwarf planets: Ceres - Pluto - Makemake - Haumea - Eris






17. Oceans cover __ of the earth's surface






18. The degrees north or south of the equator






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






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






21. Form when magma or lava cools and solidifies - Depending on the rate of cooling - can contain visible crystals - while others can appear glassy






22. 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






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






24. 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






25. 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






26. 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






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






28. 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






29. A semi - closed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it - and with a free connection to the open sea - Often associated with high levels of biological diversity - They are made up of brackish water - Often given names






30. Two feldspars (orthoclase and plagioclase) - quartz - olivine - and augite - These five minerals are silicates - built from interlocking silicon and oxygen atoms






31. Forms over the Tropics and is warm






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






33. Officially defined as sustained sea surface temperature anomalies of magnitude greater than 0.5






34. 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






35. 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






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






37. 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)






38. Refers to the long - term weather patterns of a large geographical area and takes into account temperature - humidity - and precipitation






39. The motive force behind land breezes and sea/lake breezes - also known as on - or off - shore winds - Land absorbs and radiates heat faster than water - but water releases heat over a longer period of time






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






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






42. Mountains blocking the path of precipitation to the desert






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






44. Takes place when the moon passes between the earth and the sun - with the moon blocking the sunlight for about two minutes - A total ___________ may be seen only from a small zone on the earth






45. An opening - or rupture - in a planet's surface or crust - which allows hot molten rock - ash - and gases to escape from below the surface - Volcanic activity involving the extrusion of rock tends to form mountains or features like mountains over a p






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






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






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






49. How much matter is in the object






50. Igneous rock that cools beneath the earth's surface - Examples: plutons - dikes - and batholiths