Earth and Space Science
Mock Exam
Course Introduction
Earth and Space Science explores the fundamental processes and systems that shape our planet and the universe beyond. This course examines Earth's structure, composition, and dynamic processes such as plate tectonics, weather, and climate, alongside investigations into the solar system, stars, galaxies, and cosmology. Students gain an understanding of the interconnections between Earth's atmosphere, hydrosphere, geosphere, and biosphere, as well as humanity's place within the broader context of space. Through scientific inquiry, observation, and analysis, the course encourages curiosity about natural phenomena and fosters a deeper appreciation for the complexity and beauty of Earth and the cosmos.
Recommended Textbook
EARTH 1st Edition by Graham R. Thompson
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Chapter 1: Earth Systems
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Sample Questions
Q1) Liquid freshwater amounts to about __________ percent of Earth's total water.
A) 0.64
B) 6.4
C) 16.4
D) 60.4
Answer: A
Q2) The Earth's core is composed of hot, partially molten granite.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
Q3) The Earth's atmosphere acts as a blanket, retaining heat at night and dispersing direct solar heating during the day.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q4) A giant meteorite smashing into Earth is an example of gradualism.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
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Chapter 2: Minerals
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Sample Questions
Q1) Ninety-two percent of the Earth's crust is composed of __________ minerals.
A) silicate
B) sulfide
C) oxide
D) carbonate
Answer: A
Q2) The two most abundant elements in Earth's crust are __________.
A) oxygen (O) and silicon (Si)
B) oxygen (O) and lead (Pb)
C) silicon (Si) and nickel (Ni)
D) lead (Pb) and nickel (Ni)
Answer: A
Q3) Quartz makes up __________ percent of the Earth's crust.
A) more than 50
B) 32
C) 12
D) 0.1
Answer: C
Q4) __________ __________is the characteristic shape of an individual crystal.
Answer: Crystal habit
Page 4
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Chapter 3: Rocks
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Sample Questions
Q1) Obsidian is volcanic glass where the atoms are arranged in a random chaotic pattern.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q2) The weight of overlying sediment on sedimentary grains causes their __________.
Answer: compaction
Q3) Sedimentary bedding forms as:
A) sediment metamorphoses.
B) sedimentary rocks are eroded.
C) sediment is deposited.
D) tectonic forces deform sedimentary rocks.
Answer: C
Q4) Burial metamorphism is occurring today deep within the Mississippi River delta.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q5) The process by which rocks and minerals change in response to changing temperature, pressure, and/or chemical composition within the crust is __________.
Answer: metamorphism
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Chapter 4: Geologic Time: a Story in the Rocks
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Sample Questions
Q1) The smallest unit of geologic time is a/an __________.
A) era
B) epoch
C) eon
D) period
Q2) Fossil remains first became very abundant during the Cambrian Period.
A)True
B)False
Q3) When a parent isotope decomposes, the quantity of daughter isotopes in a sample decreases with time.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Geologic evidence for the cause of the extinction event at the end of the Cretaceous includes:
A) a silicate-rich layer.
B) glacier deposits.
C) iron-nickel deposits.
D) an iridium-rich layer.
Q5) The fact that sedimentary rocks usually become younger from bottom to top is the principle of __________.
6
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Chapter 5: Geologic Resources
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Sample Questions
Q1) _______________ is formed as a residual deposit in warm climates.
A) Bauxite
B) Banded iron
C) A manganese nodule
D) A hydrothermal vein deposit
Q2) On the average, more than half of the oil in a reservoir is left behind after a well has "gone dry," using primary recovery techniques.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Petroleum, coal, and natural gas are called __________ __________because they formed from the remains of plants and animals that lived in the geologic past.
Q4) Low-grade hydrothermal deposits throughout a rock body are called __________ __________ deposits.
Q5) __________ energy resources are replenished by natural processes as we use them.
Q6) Plant matter is composed mainly of carbon, hydrogen, and silicon.
A)True
B)False
Q7) __________ __________ contain an oil-like substance called bitumen.
Q8) __________ __________ are the known amount of ore in the ground.
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Chapter 6: The Active Earth: Plate Tectonics
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Sample Questions
Q1) Fossil distribution on continents had no bearing on Alfred Wegener's theory about continental drift.
A)True
B)False
Q2) The asthenosphere is a rigid, brittle rock layer.
A)True
B)False
Q3) A/an __________ __________ is a long narrow trough in the sea floor formed where a portion of an oceanic plate sinks into the mantle.
Q4) Tectonic plates typically move at rates of 1 to 16 __________ per year.
A) millimeters
B) meters
C) centimeters
D) kilometers
Q5) A continent can be pulled apart at a divergent boundary in a process called __________ __________.
Q6) The __________ __________ system is an undersea mountain chain encircling the planet that forms at divergent plate boundaries.
Q7) The Earth's __________ is about 2,900 kilometers thick.
Page 8
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Chapter 7: Earthquakes and the Earths Structure
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Sample Questions
Q1) A/an __________ is a sea wave generated by an underwater earthquake.
Q2) Moment magnitude most closely reflects the total amount of energy released during an earthquake.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Where two tectonic plates move past one another, rock near the plate boundary can stretch or compress elastically for decades, and then fracture suddenly and create an earthquake.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Earthquakes occur repeatedly along established faults because:
A) they are over a spreading center.
B) when tectonic stress builds, the rock is more likely to move along the fault than to crack again and create a new fault.
C) they are occurring slowly and continuously at a subduction zone.
D) they occur at plate interiors.
Q5) The total amount of energy released during an earthquake, calculated from the amount of movement and the surface area of a fault, is measured by the ___________________ scale.
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Chapter 8: Volcanoes and Plutons
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Sample Questions
Q1) __________ is lava with a jagged, broken surface.
A) Pahoehoe lava
B) Aa lava
C) Cosmic lava
D) Plutonic lava
Q2) The periodicity of Yellowstone eruptions, the presence of shallow magma, and the well-known tendency of magma of this type to erupt multiple times all suggest that a fourth eruption may occur.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Which of the following tectonic environments does not generate large quantities of magma?
A) transform boundaries
B) mantle plumes
C) subduction zones
D) spreading centers
Q4) Mount St. Helens in the state of Washington is an example of a stratovolcano.
A)True
B)False
Q5) The magma of andesite and diorite contains __________ silica than granite.
Page 10
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Chapter 9: Mountains
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Sample Questions
Q1) The term __________ refers to the process of mountain building.
A) orogeny
B) origami
C) orology
D) originy
Q2) The sides of a fold are called synclines.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Where two continents collide, one continent is forced under the other in a process called __________.
Q4) Continents move about as fast as your fingernail grows.
A)True
B)False
Q5) A slip is:
A) the distance that rocks on opposite sides of a fault have moved.
B) an elliptical anticlinal feature.
C) a wedge-shaped block of rock that drops downward between a pair of faults.
D) blocks of rock between down-dropped grabens.
Q6) Continental mountain ranges rise because the crust becomes __________ where tectonic plates collide.
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Chapter 10: Weathering, Soil, and Erosion
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Sample Questions
Q1) Oxidation in rocks occurs when iron in minerals reacts with oxygen.
A)True
B)False
Q2) The removal of weathered material is __________.
Q3) In the weathering process of pressure-release fracturing:
A) salts crystallize in cracks, enlarging fractures.
B) bedrock minerals decompose to clay.
C) bedrock expands and fractures when the overlying rock erodes away.
D) bedrock dissolves and ground water carries the dissolved ions away.
Q4) During __________, rock or soil flows slowly downslope under the influence of gravity.
Q5) Vegetation has a great influence on the probability of landslides.
A)True
B)False
Q6) The combined O and A soil horizons are also called __________.
Q7) A __________ occurs when a block of material slides downhill as a consolidated unit over a gently curved fracture.
Q8) In a moist tropical climate, dissolved ions may be leached out of the soil, forming
Page 12
Q9) Frost wedging is an example of __________ weathering.
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Chapter 11: Fresh Water: Streams, Lakes, Ground Water, and Wetlands
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Sample Questions
Q1) Steep V-shaped streams are common in both deserts and glacial environments.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Water evaporates directly from plants as they breathe in a process called __________.
Q3) __________ __________ is the portion of a stream's load transported along its bottom.
Q4) A stream's erosional strength is:
A) greatest in a slow flowing stream.
B) greatest in a fast flowing stream.
C) minimal during a flood.
D) constant regardless of velocity.
Q5) The top of a saturated zone created by an impermeable layer that lies above the main water table is called a/an __________ __________ __________.
Q6) Alluvial fans are common in arid and semiarid mountainous regions.
A)True
B)False
Page 14
Q7) A/an __________ __________ is a mound of sediment that accumulates on the inside of a meander.
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Chapter 12: Water Resources
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Sample Questions
Q1) An example of nonpoint source of pollution is:
A) a septic tank.
B) a gasoline spill.
C) fertilizer spread over a farmer's field.
D) a factory.
Q2) If desert or semidesert soils are irrigated for long periods of time:
A) the soil remains fertile and productive.
B) salt accumulates and destroys fertility.
C) salinization improves soil fertility.
D) the water becomes too silty to use.
Q3) A/an __________ pollutant can be consumed and destroyed by organisms.
A) nonbiodegradable
B) biodegradable
C) radioactive
D) toxic organic
Q4) Subsidence of the Earth's surface:
A) can be caused by removal of ground water.
B) can be caused by excessive addition of irrigation water.
C) results from expansion of the pore spaces in an aquifer.
D) can usually be reversed.
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Chapter 13: Glaciers and Ice Ages
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Sample Questions
Q1) The lower end of a glacier is called the __________.
A) snow line
B) terminus
C) zone of accumulation
D) tail
Q2) __________ __________ is glacier movement as a viscous fluid.
Q3) The Pleistocene Ice Age started about __________ million years ago.
A) 0.2
B) 2
C) 20
D) 200
Q4) Crevasses form in the:
A) lower plastic zone of a glacier.
B) lower brittle zone of a glacier.
C) brittle upper 40 meters of a glacier.
D) brittle lower 40 meters of a glacier.
Q5) A small glacial valley lying high above the floor of the main valley is called a/an
Q6) __________ is sediment that was deposited directly by a glacier.
Q7) __________ is a lithified glacial deposit.
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Chapter 14: Deserts and Wind
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Sample Questions
Q1) Vast tropical forests grow near the equator because:
A) rising equatorial air cools and condenses as rain.
B) warm, moist air rises to form a high pressure region.
C) warm moist air sinks, creating low pressure.
D) rising air is heated and the moisture condenses.
Q2) Outside of the polar regions, the Earth's land surface is __________ desert.
A) 50 percent
B) less than 3 percent
C) about 25 percent
D) about 10 percent
Q3) Wind erosion, called __________, is a selective process in which the wind moves only small particles, such as silt and sand.
Q4) A/an __________ is a broad, gently sloping depositional surface formed by merging alluvial fans.
Q5) Loess is:
A) silt that has been transported and deposited by wind.
B) a type of glacial moraine.
C) a dried-out river bed.
D) a fossil dune.
Q6) __________ __________ __________ form on the leeward sides of a mountain range.
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Chapter 15: Ocean Basins
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Sample Questions
Q1) Hot seawater dissolves metals as it circulates through oceanic crust.
A)True
B)False
Q2) The Mid-Oceanic Ridge system is the Earth's largest mountain chain.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Active continental margins do not have continental rises.
A)True
B)False
Q4) If a series of island arcs collide with a continent over a long period of time, they add to a continent as:
A) accreted terranes.
B) mid-oceanic ridges.
C) abyssal plains.
D) high plains.
Q5) A turbidity current can travel at speeds greater than 100 kilometers per hour and for distances up to 700 kilometers.
A)True
B)False
Q6) Modern sea-floor maps are made with __________ __________ instruments.
Page 18
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Chapter 16: Oceans and Coastlines
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Sample Questions
Q1) The __________ of seawater is the total quantity of dissolved salt, expressed as a percentage.
Q2) Ocean waves:
A) are continuous flows of water in a particular direction.
B) oscillate in circles.
C) are found only near closely spaced islands.
D) are found only in the central oceans.
Q3) Longshore currents cannot carry sand and sediment for long distances.
A)True
B)False
Q4) An ocean wave moves along the sea surface, but the water in the wave travels in circular paths.
A)True
B)False
Q5) Sea level has risen and fallen repeatedly in the geologic past, and coastlines have emerged and submerged throughout the history of the planet.
A)True
B)False
Q6) The __________ is the distance between successive crests or troughs of a wave.
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Chapter 17: The Atmosphere
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Sample Questions
Q1) Acidic precipitation is produced:
A) when sulfur dioxide and oxides of nitrogen dissolve in water droplets in the atmosphere.
B) by nuclear fission reactors.
C) by atmospheric inversion.
D) when sunlight reacts with automobile exhaust.
Q2) During the __________ __________ __________ __________, about 2.4 billion years ago, oxygen concentration in the atmosphere increased to appreciable quantities.
Q3) Fly ash is a particulate air pollutant released when coal is burned.
A)True
B)False
Q4) The highest portion of the atmosphere that absorbs high-energy radiation is the: A) hydrosphere.
B) troposphere.
C) mesosphere.
D) thermosphere.
Q5) Atmospheric temperature decreases continuously with altitude in all layers.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 18: Energy Balance in the Atmosphere
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Q1) __________ plays an important role in heat transfer and storage because it commonly occurs naturally on Earth in all three states: solid, liquid, and gas.
A) Hydrogen
B) Air
C) Rock
D) Water
Q2) __________ absorbs infrared radiation in the atmosphere.
A) Oxygen
B) Nitrogen
C) Carbon dioxide
D) Helium
Q3) The region of the globe directly beneath the Sun is warmer because it receives:
A) the least concentrated radiation.
B) the most concentrated radiation.
C) light of a different frequency.
D) light of a different wavelength.
Q4) The Earth's surface emits __________ radiation, which has a relatively long wavelength and low frequency.
Q5) __________ is the reflectivity of a surface.
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Chapter 19: Moisture, Clouds, and Weather
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Q1) A/an __________ is a seasonal wind caused by uneven heating and cooling of land and sea.
Q2) __________ is a condition in which water droplets in air do not freeze even when the air cools below the freezing point.
A) Saturation
B) Supersaturation
C) Supercooling
D) Dew
Q3) __________ __________ is the amount of water vapor in air relative to the maximum it can hold at a given temperature.
Q4) When condensation occurs above the elevation at which air stops rising, __________ clouds form.
A) cumulus
B) stratus
C) cirrus
D) no
Q5) __________ fog occurs when warm, moist air from the sea blows onto cooler land.
Q6) __________ clouds are fluffy clouds with flat bottoms and billowy tops.
Q7) When relative humidity exceeds 100 percent, the air becomes __________.
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Chapter 20: Climate
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Sample Questions
Q1) Storm fronts pass over cities more quickly than they do over the surrounding countryside.
A)True
B)False
Q2) The __________ __________ is characterized by dry summers, rainy winters, and moderate temperature. This climate zone occurs along the coast in southern California.
Q3) High-altitude winds from the equator continue to flow all the way to the poles because they are deflected by the Coriolis effect.
A)True
B)False
Q4) The __________ __________ __________ is the high-altitude wind marking the boundary between cold polar air and the warm, moist westerly flow that originates in the subtropics.
Q5) In a Mediterranean climate, 75 percent or more of the annual rainfall occurs in winter.
A)True B)False
Q6) The __________ biome is characteristic of Arctic and high alpine regions.
Page 23
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Chapter 21: Climate Change
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Sample Questions
Q1) Plant pollen can only be used for the past several hundred years to infer climate conditions.
A)True
B)False
Q2) There is evidence that extreme cold periods 600 to 700 million years ago froze the oceans from pole to pole and covered the continents with glaciers, leading to a
__________.
Q3) Water molecules containing <sup>16</sup>O are __________ and evaporate __________ than those containing <sup>18</sup>O.
A) lighter, more easily
B) lighter, at a lower rate
C) heavier, more easily
D) heavier, at a lower rate
Q4) When fossil fuels burn, carbon is released into the atmosphere as __________ __________.
Q5) <sup>18</sup>O is a very abundant isotope of oxygen.
A)True B)False
Q6) The Sun produces energy by __________ __________.
Page 24
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Chapter 22: Motions in the Heavens
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Q1) More than 99.99 percent of the spectrum is visible to the naked eye.
A)True
B)False
Q2) A Doppler shift to a lower frequency is called a __________ shift.
Q3) Aristotle proposed a heliocentric Universe.
A)True
B)False
Q4) In the Northern Hemisphere, the Pole Star:
A) appears in the summer and is invisible during the winter months.
B) circles the sky relative to the other stars.
C) disappears completely every 29.5 days.
D) remains motionless in the sky and all other stars appear to revolve around it.
Q5) If we knew that the Sun rose every morning in the east and set every evening in the west, approximately 12 hours later, but we had no other information, which of the following conclusions would be reasonable?
A) The Sun orbits around the Earth once every 365 days.
B) The Sun orbits around the Earth once every 24 hours.
C) The Earth orbits around the Sun once every 365 days.
D) The Earth rotates on its axis once every 365 days.
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Chapter 23: Planets and Their Moons
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Q1) Asteroids may change their orbits frequently and erratically.
A)True
B)False
Q2) Io is the most active volcanic body in the Solar System.
A)True
B)False
Q3) The craters on Mercury are about __________ years old.
A) 4 thousand
B) 4 million
C) 4 billion
D) 4 trillion
Q4) Both Uranus and Neptune:
A) can be seen with the naked eye.
B) have interiors composed of liquid metallic hydrogen.
C) have atmospheres composed primarily of helium and hydrogen.
D) are less dense than Saturn.
Q5) Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune have retained large amounts of hydrogen and helium and are called the __________ __________.
Q6) Spacecraft have photographed volcanic eruptions on __________, one of Jupiter's moons.
Page 26
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Chapter 24: Stars, Space, and Galaxies
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Q1) In the Sun's core, __________ fusion takes place.
A) iron
B) oxygen
C) hydrogen
D) carbon
Q2) The __________ __________ of a star is its brightness as seen 10 parsec away from Earth.
Q3) About 90 percent of all stars lie in the main sequence.
A)True
B)False
Q4) When a star the size of our Sun dies, it will blow a ring of gas called a/an __________ __________ into space.
Q5) A __________ is a concentration of billions of stars held together by their mutual gravitation.
A) galaxy
B) pulsar
C) quasar
D) black hole
Q6) A graph that plots absolute magnitudes versus temperatures is called a/an __________ diagram.
Page 27
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