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Meteor Showers Trivia Quiz

Look mom, a shooting star!

A multiple-choice quiz by random_quasar. Estimated time: 5 mins.

Author
random_quasar

Time
5 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
241,674

Updated
Feb 21 23

# Qns
15

Difficulty
Tough

Avg Score
8 / 15

Plays
4164

Awards
Top 20% Quiz

Last 3 plays: Guest 64 (5/15), Guest 202 (1/15), Guest 212 (4/15).

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 15

1. What are meteor showers? Hint

Glowing debris in the Earth's atmosphere.

An eruption of rocks and dust in the sky.

Dying stars.

Rocks from space found on Earth.

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Question 2 of 15

2. What causes a meteor shower? Hint

Earth's atmosphere

Comets

All of these

Debris

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Question 3 of 15

3. Meteor showers occur only on Earth.

True

False

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Question 4 of 15

4. What is the name of the most visible meteor shower which occurs every August? Hint

Geminids

Leonids

Perseids

Eta Aquarids

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Question 5 of 15

5. What are meteor showers named after? Hint

The constellation which they appear to be falling from.

The individual who discovered it.

The month which they occur in.

Roman gods.

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Question 6 of 15

6. What do we call the point in the sky where all of the meteors seem to radiate from? Hint

zenith

origin

comet

radiant

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Question 7 of 15

7. What is it called when a meteor shower has a frequency of at least one meteor per second? Hint

meteor shower

meteor storm

The end of the world.

meteor outburst

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Question 8 of 15

8. What is the common name for random meteor storms (not annual meteor showers)? Hint

meteor flash

heavy meteor storm

surprise meteor shower

meteor outburst

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Question 9 of 15

9. What do you call the brief glow behind a meteor? Hint

wake

flash

afterglow

trail

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Question 10 of 15

10. What is the name of the metallic emission glow in the path of bright fireballs? Hint

wake

afterglow

trail

flash

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Question 11 of 15

11. Which comet left the debris which we call the Perseids? Hint

Temple-Tuttle

Swift-Tuttle

Halley

Encke

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Question 12 of 15

12. Which comet left the debris which we call the Leonids? Hint

Temple-Tuttle

Swift-Tuttle

Encke

Halley

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Question 13 of 15

13. What do you call a relatively small (sand-to boulder-sized) fragment of debris in the Solar System? Hint

meteoroid

meteorite

meteor

comet

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Question 14 of 15

14. What do we call a piece of debris from the Solar System when it has reached the ground? Hint

meteoroid

interplanetary dust

meteorite

meteor

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Question 15 of 15

15. What do we call the visible path of a meteoroid when it enters the Earth's atmosphere? Hint

meteorite

meteor

meteoroid

gas tail

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. What are meteor showers?

Answer: Glowing debris in the Earth's atmosphere.

A meteor shower can occur annually or randomly; it is characterized by a larger number of meteors in the sky than usual.

2. What causes a meteor shower?

Answer: All of these

The Earth passes through debris left from the path of a comet. Those particles evaporate high in the Earth's atmosphere creating a beautiful glow of light.

3. Meteor showers occur only on Earth.

Answer: False

Meteor showers can be found on any other solar system body with a reasonably transparent atmosphere. The Spirit Mars rover recorded a streak in the sky of Mars. We believe that it was a meteor from a Martian meteor shower.

4. What is the name of the most visible meteor shower which occurs every August?

Answer: Perseids

The beautiful Perseids peak every year around August 12th.

5. What are meteor showers named after?

Answer: The constellation which they appear to be falling from.

The Perseid meteor shower appears to radiate from the constellation Perseus.

6. What do we call the point in the sky where all of the meteors seem to radiate from?

Answer: radiant

An observer might see a meteor anywhere in the sky. However, when the direction of motion is traced back, it will point to the radiant.

7. What is it called when a meteor shower has a frequency of at least one meteor per second?

Answer: meteor storm

Officially, for a meteor shower to be considered a meteor storm, rates have to increase to 1000 per hour(or 1 per second).

8. What is the common name for random meteor storms (not annual meteor showers)?

Answer: meteor outburst

Only when the Earth travels through relatively fresh cometary matter will rates exceed the normal level of annual activity. Then, and only then, can we see a meteor outburst.

9. What do you call the brief glow behind a meteor?

Answer: wake

It is easy to remember because the small wave following a boat is also called the wake.

10. What is the name of the metallic emission glow in the path of bright fireballs?

Answer: afterglow

Afterglow only lasts a few seconds.

11. Which comet left the debris which we call the Perseids?

Answer: Swift-Tuttle

Most of the debris is approximately a thousand years old.

12. Which comet left the debris which we call the Leonids?

Answer: Temple-Tuttle

The Leonids are famous because their meteor showers can be among the most spectacular.

13. What do you call a relatively small (sand-to boulder-sized) fragment of debris in the Solar System?

Answer: meteoroid

The current International Astronomical Union (IAU) definition of a meteoroid dates back to 1961:"A solid object moving in interplanetary space, of a size considerably smaller than an asteroid and considerably larger than an atom or molecule."
The most common definition was proposed in 1995, and sets the size limits of meteoroids to between 100 �m and 10 m across.

14. What do we call a piece of debris from the Solar System when it has reached the ground?

Answer: meteorite

Meteorites have traditionally been divided into three broad categories: stony meteorites, iron meteorites, and stony-iron meteorites.

15. What do we call the visible path of a meteoroid when it enters the Earth's atmosphere?

Answer: meteor

A meteor is a meteoroid that has entered the earth's atmosphere. It becomes visible due to the heat produced when entering the atmosphere. If a meteor survives its path through the atmosphere and comes to rest on the Earth's surface, the resulting object is called a meteorite. When there is a large number of meteors seen within a very short period of time, it is called a meteor shower.

Source: Author random_quasar

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