Chapters 9 and 10


[1] Short Answer Questions (10 points; 1 point for each lettered subheading):

(a) How long is a day for Jupiter’s equatorial clouds?

(b) What temperature is thought to exist in the core of Jupiter?

(c) What is the height of the cliff on Miranda (small moon of Uranus)?

(d) What moon of Saturn is shaped like a walnut (with a giant equatorial ridge)?

(e) How many Earths would span Jupiter’s largest storm (the Great Red Spot)?

(f) Which planet has a mysterious hexagonal pattern of clouds surrounding its north pole?

(g) Which planet has an extreme spin axis tilt (axis lies within 8 degrees of the plane of orbit)?

(h) What planet has an average density less than water?

(i) What planet has the strongest magnetic field in the solar system?

(j) What moon (of what planet) exhibits active geysers of liquid Nitrogen?

[2] Long answer exercise (10 points)
Discuss in some detail three unique features of Titan, moon of Saturn (not its size).

[3] Long answer exercise (10 points)
Explain all the causes and conditions that heat Europa’s interior, resulting in an ocean of water under a
thick ice sheet. Europa’s ocean is potentially a habitat for alien aquatic life!
FYI: Similar processes are thought to cause Io’s active volcanoes.

[4] Long answer exercise (10 points)
Why is Triton (the largest moon of Neptune) spiraling in toward Neptune?
Why will Triton never collide with Neptune. (Explain thoroughly).

[5] “Two Sentence Answer” Questions (10 points; 2 points for each lettered subheading):

(a) What causes the Cassini Gap in the rings of Saturn? See figure 9–29.

(b) What causes the Kirkwood Gaps in the asteroid belt?

(c) Describe Oumuamua’s trajectory.

(d) What evidence supports the speculation that Enceladus (a moon of Saturn) might harbor life.

(e) Describe the strange behavior of Saturn’s co–orbiting satellites: Janus and Epimetheus.

[Extra Points] Long answer exercise. (8 points)
Where are the Greek and Trojan asteroids located? Draw a diagram. Why are there asteroids in these
locations? (See Canvas/Pages/(11) Greek, Trojan, and Hilda asteroids) (See Figure 10–21 page 333).