ASSIGNMENT & ANSWERS What is a comet?
A) A celestial body that only consists of a gaseous atmosphere
B) A celestial body that consists of a solid core and a gaseous atmosphere C) A celestial body that consists of a liquid core and a solid surface ✔ D) A celestial body that only consists of a solid core
E) A celestial body that consists of a liquid core and a gaseous atmosphere ---
Which of the following comets is known for having an extremely long orbital period?
A) Comet PanSTARRS B) Hale-Bopp Comet ✔ C) Halley's Comet D) Comet Wild 2 E) Comet ISON ---
What is the name given to the glowing head or nucleus of a comet?
A) Chromosphere B) Photosphere C) Coma ✔ D) Tail E) Corona ---
What is responsible for the tails of comets?
A) Solar wind blowing the comet's tail ✔ B) Lunar gravity pulling the comet's tail
C) Magnetic field interactions with the comet's core particles D) Dust particles expelled from the comet
E) Ionization of the comet's core particles ---
Which of the following is NOT a component of a comet's nucleus?
A) Methane (CH4) B) Carbon dioxide (CO2) C) Oxygen (O2) ✔
D) Ammonia (NH3) E) Water vapor (H2O) ---
What is the name given to a small chunk of a comet that breaks off and enters Earth's atmosphere?
A) Shooting Star B) Meteoroid C) Asteroid D) Meteor ✔ E) Fireball
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How are comets different from asteroids?
A) Comets are made up of rock and metal, while asteroids are made up of ice B) Comets are larger in size compared to asteroids
C) Comets are composed of dust and ice, while asteroids are composed mainly of rock and metal ✔
D) Comets have elliptical orbits, while asteroids have circular orbits
E) Comets develop tails when they get close to the Sun, while asteroids do not ---
What is the Kuiper Belt?
A) A region in space populated by comets B) A region in space populated by meteoroids C) A region in space populated by asteroids D) A region in space populated by gas giants E) A region in space populated by dwarf planets ✔ ---
Which spacecraft made a close flyby of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in 2014?
A) New Horizons B) Voyager 1
C) Mars Rover Curiosity D) Cassini
E) Rosetta ✔ ---
The Oort Cloud is a hypothetical region of space that is believed to contain:
A) Comets ✔ B) Asteroids C) Meteoroids D) Dwarf planets E) Gas giants ---
