1. What is the lecture mainly about?
A. Reasons why exoplanets tend to have retrograde orbits
B. Different methods used to discover giant gas exoplanets
C. A new discovery about the formation of distant stars and planets
D. The detection of an exoplanet and its unusual characteristics
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2. Why does the professor point out that stars and planets form from swirling gas clouds?
A. To help explain how planetary orbits are initially established
B. To help students remember a theory about gas giant planets
C. To emphasize the indirect nature of astronomical research
D. To suggest an explanation for the thick clouds on WASP-17b
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3. According to the professor, what are two weaknesses of the method of using a star’s wobble to detect exoplanets?
Click on 2 answers.
A. Equipment used to observe stars is more sensitive to blue shifts than to red shifts.
B. It is impossible to detect a wobble created by low-mass objects in orbit
C. The method is useful only when the star’s distance from Earth is affected
D. Some stars wobble without the influence of an orbiting object.
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4. What does the professor suggest about the analogy of the spinning top?
A. It helps explain an important aspect of the red-blue starlight shift.
B. It provides only a basic illustration of the process that could change a planet’s orbit
C. It overstates the impact that gravity has on the motion of distant stars
D. It demonstrates why retrograde orbits tend to be less stable than regular orbits.
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5. What does the professor say contributes to WASP-17b’s large diameter?
A. WASP-17b’s gas composition allows it to expand easily when heated.
B. WASP-17b’s retrograde orbit causes it to expand
C. WASP-17b’s strong gravitational force continually pulls in new material.
D. WASP-17b collided with many other planets early in its formation
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6. What is the professor’s opinion regarding WASP-17b’s internal heat?
A. It will probably destroy the planet’s atmosphere eventually.
B. It indicates that WASP-17b is closer to its star than originally thought.
C. It is likely to decrease as WASP-17b continues to expand in size.
D. It is probably the result of two independent processes.