Solar System B

[syo_astro]

Also, I have not started studying for the event yet. I have almost zero knowledge in the solar system. If I just start studying from what the event is on, will I miss some basics that I should know or not make sense?

You could probably just read a few webpages about the solar system to know some basic astronomy concepts that apply within our solar system (and out of it). For example, slingshotting, Kepler's Laws, etc. The rules manual and what's on it should be your priority for this event, though. Don't focus too much of your time on general solar system stuff.

First, most if not all competitors start with no background knowledge, so don't sweat that. Science Olympiad is meant for exploring science you don't know / want to learn about!

Agreed, if you're completely new to an event, first read the rules manual, FAQs, and rules clarifications (not necessarily the wiki or anything) and check the event page for your event on soinc.org. Either your coach should have this, or it should be somewhere on soinc.org. The rules describe what to focus on for each event, and events are ran based on these rules. The wiki actually has a section about this: https://scioly.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page (go to Preparing for Competition and all the links there about Notes, Test Taking, etc...I think Preparing for Competition has a link from soinc.org about preparation at the start of it)

A summary about how to prep after reading all of that: most people start by googling, reading books, and asking people about each topic in the rules. While researching, they compile notes (like I said, the wiki has tips and examples). If you hit a topic you really don't get, you note it down for later to review and dig deeper into. They then condense the notes/pictures into whatever limited resources/notes you have for a given event. One also should work with their partner as working with others is strongly encouraged. Usually you can split the work / topics with your partner, teach each other, put notes together, etc, especially if you're pressed for time. After initial work, students take a practice test or teams attend invitationals to practice and check what they need to study more about.

[AwersomeUser]

Ok thanks.
The wiki says that “This event often contains many questions/tasks not listed on the event sheet, so you should study anything that could be interpreted as related to our solar system.”.
So does it mean by this? Can you give an example?

[isotelus]

Ok thanks.
The wiki says that “This event often contains many questions/tasks not listed on the event sheet, so you should study anything that could be interpreted as related to our solar system.”.
So does it mean by this? Can you give an example?

This basically is saying that you should be prepared and expect that some topics that aren't exactly on the rules might be on tests. The solar system rules are pretty vague, so a lot of things can be asked. Event sheet does mean rules, right?

[syo_astro]

Ok thanks.
The wiki says that “This event often contains many questions/tasks not listed on the event sheet, so you should study anything that could be interpreted as related to our solar system.”.
So does it mean by this? Can you give an example?

This basically is saying that you should be prepared and expect that some topics that aren't exactly on the rules might be on tests. The solar system rules are pretty vague, so a lot of things can be asked. Event sheet does mean rules, right?

Those tips could be from a while ago (haven't checked / done the event, I can't say for sure...others?). I think there's a tab at the top right you can check to view history / check when edits were made. In the past, the Solar System rules were very general and had to do with the entire Solar System. That said, I did say test writers can come upon various circumstances, be rushed, etc...you probably shouldn't worry about studying literally everything when you're new to something, though.

[AwersomeUser]

Ok thanks.

I have any question. How deep do I have to study?

Participants may be asked to identify geologic surface features and internal structures of the objects
listed below as they appear on diagrams, maps, or images.

Each of them must have a lot of geologic surface features so do I need to learn about all of them?

[Adi1008]

Ok thanks.

I have any question. How deep do I have to study?

Participants may be asked to identify geologic surface features and internal structures of the objects
listed below as they appear on diagrams, maps, or images.

Each of them must have a lot of geologic surface features so do I need to learn about all of them?

This is a tough question because it depends on what level of competition you're aiming for and what the quality of tests there will be. When I did Solar System, I usually got a good idea of this by taking as many tests as I could and seeing what types of features test writers would prioritize.

If your goal is to be among the best at nationals, where the test is extremely well-written and quite tough (and fast-paced!), my advice is to be able to identify any feature that is extensively observed (whether by normal images, false color, other sensors, etc.) or has an exceptionally unique morphology. I generally determine these by looking through annotated images from missions. At the same time, the really minor features will never be a big part of the test. While you should study them, you should still make sure to focus more on the well-known features, which often have press releases or articles written specifically about them.

In general, the more a feature has been observed, the more information exists about it, and the more likely it is tested over. For most invitationals and regionals, I think you should focus on the well known features the most. As you go on to higher levels of competitions, focus more on the lesser-known features than you did before, but still prioritize the most famous ones.

[AwersomeUser]

Ok thanks.
Do you know if the test going to be printed in black and white or in color? What exactly would the hands on task be about? Isn’t it basically going to be about the same thing sample performance task? Also, have anyone bought the Recommended Resources before? Are they helpful?

[Adi1008]

Ok thanks.
Do you know if the test going to be printed in black and white or in color? What exactly would the hands on task be about? Isn’t it basically going to be about the same thing sample performance task? Also, have anyone bought the Recommended Resources before? Are they helpful?

Most tournaments will make sure that anything that requires color pictures (like Solar System does for identification) will be printed in color. However, sometimes a tournament might not have the resources to do so and I've gotten a black and white solar system test a couple of times, although that was a couple of years ago (2013-14 and 2014-15).

The "hands-on/interpretative" task is a bit misleading in terms of the name; there is usually nothing very hands-on. In my experience it's usually just asking more detailed questions about the features and concepts in the rules, like the "sample performance tasks" section in the rules gives examples of. The most "hands-on" things I've seen are drawing things (like types of craters) and estimating distances by using a ruler/scale.

I've never bought the Bio/Earth Science CD before, but there are a lot of good resources publicly available for Solar System online, like the Chandra webinars.

[AwersomeUser]

Oh ok. The rules says that “Participants must be knowledgeable about the history and geologic processes involved in the formation and evolution of Earth’s moon and other rocky bodies of the solar system.”. Do you know what rocky bodies is the rules referring to?

[Adi1008]

Oh ok. The rules says that “Participants must be knowledgeable about the history and geologic processes involved in the formation and evolution of Earth’s moon and other rocky bodies of the solar system.”. Do you know what rocky bodies is the rules referring to?

I think that even though it's not explicitly stated, the "rocky bodies" its referring to are those listed in 3.b. in the rules (don't want to list them here for copyright reasons).