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1.How old is our solar system?
Infinite
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4.6 billion years
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10 billion years
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Approximately 4.6 billion years ago a large cloud of gas and dust was disturbed by some force. (Scientists have theorized that this force was a nearby supernova.)
2.How many planets are in our solar system according to the International Astronomical Union?
9
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14
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8
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According to the IAU’s definition for planet, there are 8 known planets in the Solar System: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. Pluto is no longer considered a planet under the IAU definition.
3.How many moons are in our solar system?
213
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181
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Thousands
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4.Space is completely silent.
False
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True
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There is no atmosphere in space, which means that sound has no medium or way to travel to be heard.
5.What is the hottest planet in our solar system?
Mercury
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Earth
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Venus
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Venus is the hottest planet in the solar system and has an average surface temperature of around 450° C. Interestingly, Venus is not the closest planet to the Sun – Mercury is closer but because Mercury has no atmosphere to regulate temperature it has a very large temperature fluctuation.
6.A full NASA space suit costs $12,000,000.
True
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False
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While the entire suit costs a cool $12m, 70% of that cost is for the backpack and control module.
7.There may be a planet made of diamonds.
False
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True
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Research by Yale University scientists suggests that a rocky planet called 55 Cancri e — which has a radius twice Earth’s, and a mass eight times greater – may have a surface made up of graphite and diamond.
8.There is water floating around in space.
True
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False
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Astronomers have found a massive water vapor cloud which holds 140 trillion times the mass of water in the Earth’s oceans somewhere around 10 billion light years away – making it the largest discovery of water ever found.
9.What percentage of the sun's mass takes up our solar system?
12.8%
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55.9%
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99.86%
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Made of three quarters hydrogen and helium for most of its remaining mass, the Sun accounts for 99.86% of the mass in our solar system with a mass of around 330,000 times that of Earth.
10.Where is the sun in its "life" cycle?
Elderly
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Middle Aged
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Infant
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At 4.5 billion years old, the Sun has burned off around half of its hydrogen stores and has enough left to continue burning hydrogen for another 5 billion years.