1.
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Key elements that any solar system formation model must explain to be considered a success include all of the following except which one?
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2.
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What is the approximate age of the solar system, according to the best available scientific evidence?
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3.
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Which of the following is not an effect that might have originated via catastrophic collision?
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4.
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What is the primary reason that the jovian planets contain so much more volatile liquid and gaseous material than the terrestrial planets?
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5.
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How much time after the beginning of solar system formation would have been required to form the main planets, according to present mathematical modeling?
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6.
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Observations of variations in the radial velocity of the star 51 Pegasi show a variation with a period of 4.2 days, consistent with the effect that a large planet would have on the star if it orbited with the same period. According to Kepler's second law and assuming that the mass of this star is roughly the same as that of our Sun, how far away would this planet be from 51 Pegasi?
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7.
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What class of objects was discovered in 1993, lying just beyond the orbit of Neptune and roughly in the plane of the solar system, lending additional credence to the condensation hypothesis for planetary system formation?
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8.
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The collapse of condensing matter into a disk in the early stages of nebular contraction is a consequence of Newton's law of universal gravitation. Based on this, which of the following statements do you expect not to be true?
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9.
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In what way are the outer solar system objects Pluto, Charon, and Triton similar to each other?
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10.
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What is the process of accretion?
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11.
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A major problem associated with most solar system formation theories involves the conservation of
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12.
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Condensation is the process of
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13.
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Which of the following would not be a natural consequence of any planetary formation, and requires a special catastrophe to explain?
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14.
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In light of modern solar system theory, why do the orbits of the planets all lie near the same plane?
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15.
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Other than hydrogen and helium, virtually all of the natural elements were formed
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16.
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Planetesimals were created through the process of
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Protoplanets of the jovian planets could have initially grown very hot from
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18.
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Most asteroids and comets are a direct result of the process of
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19.
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What type of theory suggests the solar system was formed by the close encounter of a passing star with the Sun?
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20.
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What property of the early solar nebula resulted in the high degree of differentiation among the planets?
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