Mercury and Venus Practice Problems

Review the following concepts if needed:

• Mercury and Venus Help
• Profile of Mercury Help
• Profile of Venus Help
• From Earth to Mercury Help
• From Mercury to Venus Help

Mercury and Venus Practice Problems

A good score is 8 correct. Answers are provided at the end,.

1. In one day on Earth, the upper equatorial clouds of Venus

(a) travel about one-quarter the way around the planet.

(b) travel about one-half the way around the planet.

(c) travel all the way around the planet.

(d) travel twice around the planet.

2. The “seasons” on Mercury are caused mainly by

(a) the tilt of the planet’s axis.

(b) the clouds that cover the planet most of the time.

(c) the greenhouse effect.

(d) the difference between perihelion and aphelion.

3. Excellent conditions for observing Mercury occur when the planet

(a) is at inferior conjunction.

(b) is at superior conjunction.

(c) is at opposition.

(d) None of the above

4. When Mercury or Venus is at its greatest elongation either east or west, approximately how much of the surface do we see illuminated?

(a) None of it

(b) Half of it

(c) Three-quarters of it

(d) All of it

5. Mercury is

(a) smaller than the Moon.

(b) the same size as the Moon.

(c) larger than the Moon but smaller than Earth.

(d) the same size as Earth.

6. Mercury’s core is almost certainly made up primarily of

(a) silicate rock.

(b) iron.

(c) volcanic lava.

(d) uranium.

7. High noon on Venus would be just about as bright as

(a) the brightest midday on Mercury.

(b) a typical day on the Moon.

(c) a sunny summer afternoon on Earth.

(d) a gloomy winter day on Earth.

8. The greenhouse effect

(a) increases a planet’s surface temperature.

(b) reduces a planet’s surface temperature.

(c) increases the radiation that reaches a planet’s surface from the Sun.

(d) keeps heat energy from reaching a planet’s surface.

9. If either Mercury or Venus were to transit the Sun, to which lunar phase would its appearance most nearly correspond?

(a) Full

(b) First quarter

(c) New

(d) Last quarter

10. Which gas is the most abundant in the atmosphere beneath the clouds of Mercury?

(a) Oxygen

(b) Nitrogen

(c) Carbon dioxide

(d) This is an improper question; Mercury has no clouds.

Answers

1. A

2. D

3. D

4. B

5. C

6. B

7. D

8. A

9. C

10. D