Small bodies in our solar system

A comet's tail always points

• away from the sun

• toward the sun

• sideways

• downward

Small, icy bodies that have highly eccentric orbits and can be found in the Oort cloud or the Kuiper belt are called

• meteors

• comets

• asteroids

• meteorites

What is the shape of a planet's orbit?

• slightly elliptical

• a perfect circle

• irregular

• parabolic

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-2

Which statement best describes gravity?

• gravity is weaker when objects are close together

• gravity is stronger when objects are far apart

• gravity is stronger when objects are close together

• distance between objects does not affect the force of gravity

Tags

NGSS.HS-PS2-4

Objects in space are most likely to have an irregular shape if they

• are very dense

• are smaller

• are moving slowly

• have collapsed due to gravity

Which of the following is true of a dwarf planet?

• they are known for their ability to pull in smaller nearby debris

• they are only found beyond Neptune

• they are the same size or smaller than Pluto

• they are made of rock and ice

Why isn't Pluto considered a planet?

• Pluto has a moon, Charon, which is more than half its size

• Pluto's gravity is too weak to pull in smaller debris, so it hasn't cleared its orbital path

• Pluto's orbit around the sun is larger than that of any of the eight planets

• Pluto is smaller than all of the eight planets

Until 2006, Pluto was considered to be one of the nine planets. Now Pluto is considered to be a(an)

• moon

• comet

• asteroid

• dwarf planet

The small particles that produce a fast streak of light upon entering Earth's atmosphere are called

• comets

• meteors

• satellites

• asteroids

Most asteroids lie between the orbits of

• Mercury and Venus

• Venus and Earth

• Earth and Mars

• Mars and Jupiter