Solar System quiz questions

📚 Quick Study Guide

• ☀️ The Sun: The star at the center of our solar system, providing light and heat. Its mass is about 99.86% of the total mass of the Solar System.
• 🪐 Planets: There are eight planets in our solar system, divided into inner, rocky planets (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars) and outer, gas giants (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune).
• 🌑 Moons: Natural satellites that orbit planets. Some planets have many moons (Jupiter has over 90!), while others have none (Mercury and Venus).
• ☄️ Asteroids and Comets: Asteroids are rocky bodies mainly found in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Comets are icy bodies that release gas and dust as they approach the Sun, creating a visible tail.
• 🌌 Orbital Mechanics: Planets orbit the Sun in elliptical paths, as described by Kepler's laws. The closer a planet is to the Sun, the faster it orbits. $v = \sqrt{\frac{GM}{r}}$, where $v$ is the orbital speed, $G$ is the gravitational constant, $M$ is the mass of the Sun, and $r$ is the orbital radius.
• 🗓️ Key Dates:
  • 1543: Nicolaus Copernicus publishes 'De revolutionibus orbium coelestium', proposing a heliocentric model of the solar system.
  • 1609: Johannes Kepler publishes 'Astronomia nova', describing the first two laws of planetary motion.

🧪 Practice Quiz

1. Which planet is known as the 'Red Planet'?
   1. Venus
   2. Mars
   3. Jupiter
   4. Saturn
2. Which of the following is NOT a terrestrial planet?
   1. Mercury
   2. Venus
   3. Mars
   4. Jupiter
3. Which planet has the most moons?
   1. Saturn
   2. Jupiter
   3. Uranus
   4. Neptune
4. What is the name of the asteroid belt located between Mars and Jupiter?
   1. Kuiper Belt
   2. Asteroid Belt
   3. Oort Cloud
   4. Trojan Asteroids
5. Which of Kepler's laws states that a line segment joining a planet and the Sun sweeps out equal areas during equal intervals of time?
   1. Kepler's First Law
   2. Kepler's Second Law
   3. Kepler's Third Law
   4. Newton's Law of Universal Gravitation
6. Which planet is closest to the Sun?
   1. Venus
   2. Earth
   3. Mercury
   4. Mars
7. Which gas giant has a prominent ring system composed of ice and rock particles?
   1. Jupiter
   2. Saturn
   3. Uranus
   4. Neptune