Middle Georgia State University

Course title: ASTR 1010K

Chapter 9 Homework

1)A piece of space debris that you pick up from the ground is called a(n):

2. Suppose you were standing on Pluto. Describe the motions of Charon relative to the horizon. Under what circumstances would you never see Charon?

3. What role did Charon play in enabling astronomers to determine Pluto’s mass?

4. To test your understanding of the asteroid belt, do Interactive Exercise 9.1 on the assigned Web site.

5. In what directions do comets tail point and why?

6. What are the Trojan asteroids, and where are they located?

7. Why do astronomers believe that the debris that creates many isolated meteors comes from asteroids, whereas the debris that creates meteors showers is related to comets?

8. To test your understanding of comets, do Interactive Exercise 9.2 on the assigned Web site.
9. Why is the phrase “dirty snow” an appropriate characterized of a comet’s nucleus?

10. Why do scientists think the Tunguska event was caused by a large meteoroid and not a comet?

11. Why are comets generally brighter after passing perihelion (closest approaching to the Sun) than before reaching perihelion?

12. Where on Earth might you find large numbers of stony meteorites that have not been significantly changed by weathering?

13. Assuming a constant rate of meteor infall, how much mass has Earth gained in the past

4.6 billion years?