Study Guide Exoplanets and Planetology

Name __________________________________ Date______________________

1. Describe the physical makeup of the solar system.

a. Percentage of Suns Mass
b. Number of planets
c. Number of satellites
d. Asteroid Belt
e. Kuiper Belt, Oort Cloud
f. Trans-Neptuanian Objeccts

2. Compare and Contrast Terrestrial vs Jovian Planets in a table, highlighting Size, Mass, Density,
and Composition (Elements)

3. Compare and contrast the two prominent theories for Solar System Formation.

a. Catastrophic/tidal theory
b. Nebular theory

4. Sketch a series of diagrams illustrating the Nebular theory for planetary formation. What are
some examples of this in the night sky?

5. What physics principal is integral in the nebular formation theory?

6. What are exoplanets and when was the very first discovered?

7. What is the astrometric method of planet detection? How does it work what are the drawbacks
and benefits? About how many have been found to date. By all means include a diagram
illustrating the concept.
8. What is the transit method of planet detection? How does it work what are the drawbacks and
benefits? About how many have been found to date. By all means include a diagram illustrating
the concept.

9. What is the Radial Velocity method of planet detection? How does it work what are the
drawbacks and benefits? About how many have been found to date. By all means include a
diagram illustrating the concept.

10. What is the gravitational lensing method of planet detection? How does it work what are the
drawbacks and benefits? About how many have been found to date. By all means include a
diagram illustrating the concept.

11. What is the direct imaging method of planet detection? How does it work what are the
drawbacks and benefits? About how many have been found to date. By all means include a
diagram illustrating the concept.

12. What are the two premiere telescope utilized in the search for exoplanets? What is the next
goal for the search for life on other worlds?

13. Predict what the transit curve would look like for a hot Jupiter orbiting a small-medium star.

14. If an exoplanet takes 60 days to orbit a star that is 2x as massive as our sun, about how far away
is the planet from its central star?

15. What makes KIC 8462852 so intriguing to scientists? Why do we think we have detected a
megastructure around this world?
16. What is the Drake Equation and how is it useful?

17. Devise your own Drake equation for any situation within reason that you can think of?

18. Using optimists measurements, determine the number of communicating alien civilizations in
the galaxy.

19. Organize information gained from the planet presentations and compile them into a table.
Youll be able to utilize these on the exam.

20. List the various levels of Kardeschev scale and correlate them with energy consumption,
extinction sensitivity, and sci-fi alien race.

21. How might astronomers determine the atmospheric gasses within an exoplanets atmosphere?
22. What is significant about the Trappist I system?
23. How do Super Earths differ from Earth?

24. How do Hot Jupiters differ from Jupiter?

25. Who was Giordono Bruno, and what is the real reason this individual was executed?

26. What celestial bodies within our own solar system are thought to contain life or might have
once had life?

27. Know something about the following satellite missions to other planets:
a. Cassini b. Voyager I c. Venera 13 d. Pioneer 10

28. Explain why searches for other planetary systems have been biased towards high mass planets.

29. As far as life on Planet Earth is concerned, what are the ingredients necessary for life?
30. What is the habitable zone and what the factors that effect it?