What Do Astronomers Mean When They Refer to "Gaps" in the Asteroid

question 35

Multiple Choice

What do astronomers mean when they refer to "gaps" in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter?

• A) There are very few asteroids with diameters between 1 and 100 kilometers, creating a "gap" in the size distribution.
• B) Asteroids typically cluster together and this creates "gaps" on the sky.
• C) Asteroids seem to avoid certain orbits around the Sun, creating "gaps" in the orbits that asteroids can have.
• D) There is a large population of asteroids too faint to see called the "gap" asteroids.
• E) There are either pure metal or pure rock asteroids, but no mixtures. Thus there is a "gap" in the composition of asteroids.

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Definitions:

Recessive Genes

Genes that are expressed in offspring only when inherited from both parents, as opposed to dominant genes.

Monozygotic Twins

Twins that are genetically identical because they were formed from a single fertilized egg that split into two.

Dizygotic Twins

Also known as fraternal twins, they are two siblings born from separate eggs fertilized by separate sperm, sharing 50% of their DNA, much like regular siblings.

Heritability

A measure of how much genetic factors contribute to individual differences in a trait within a population.