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. Ancient astronomers found that eclipses occurred periodically and learned to predict them accurately - Lunar and solar






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






3. 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






4. 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






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






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






7. Bbreaking along flat surfaces






8. The sun and oceans can also affect the weather of land - If the sun heats ocean waters for a period of time - water can evaporate - Once evaporated into the air - the moisture can spread over nearby land - thus making it cooler


9. Maritime tropical (wet - warm air)






10. The transformation of water from liquid to gas phases as it moves from the ground or bodies of water into the overlying atmosphere






11. Occur twice a year - when the tilt of the earth's axis is oriented neither from nor to the sun - causing the sun to be located vertically above a point on the equator - The name derived from the Latin aequus (equal) and nox (night) - because at the e






12. Further caused by the elliptical orbit of the earth - Earth reaches perihelion (the point in its orbit closest to the sun) in January - and it reaches aphelion (farthest point from the sun) in July - Also depend on factors such as proximity to oceans






13. The strong temperature contrast between polar and tropical air gives rise to the ________






14. Volcanoes can also form where there is stretching and thinning of the...


15. The runoff produced by melting snow






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






17. 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






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






19. 1 hour of time






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






21. Piled in waves and indicate rain or snow






22. 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






23. Test the item against materials of known hardness; for example - use your fingernail or the graphite in a pencil to attempt to scratch the items. This process should result in assigning a relative hardness to the unknown items.






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






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






26. Mountains blocking the path of precipitation to the desert






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






28. 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






29. 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






30. 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






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






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






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 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






35. Bodies similar to the sun but immensely distant - Closest stars are 4 light - years away






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






37. 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






38. Oceans cover __ of the earth's surface






39. A continuous drill would find gas - oil - and water in that order - The three substances occur in their order of density - with the lightest substance on top and the heaviest on the bottom






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






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






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






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






44. The cold - water current that flows north to south off the _____________ keeps the West Coast fairly cool during the summer - Cold - water currents create cooler temperatures in areas that would otherwise be much warmer






45. 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






46. 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






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. Some water infiltrates deep into the ground and replenishes ________ - which store huge amounts of freshwater for long periods of time






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






50. 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