Atmospheres of Earth and the Planets


Book Description

This book contains the lectures presented at the Summer Advanced Study Institute, 'Physics and Chemistry of Atmospheres' which was held at the University of Liege, Belgium, during the period July 29-August 9, 1974. One-hundred nineteen persons from eleven different countries attended the Institute. The authors and publisher have made a special effort for rapid publication of an up to-date status of the physics and chemistry ofthe atmospheres of Earth and the plan ets, which is an ever-changing area. Special thanks are due to the lecturers for their diligent preparation and excellent presentations. The individual lectures and the published papers were deliberately limited; the authors' cooperation in conforming to these specifications is greatly appreciated. The contents of the book are organized by subject area rather than in the order in which papers were presented during the Institute. Many thanks are due to Drs Alv Egeland, Donald M. Hunten, Gunther Lange-Hesse, Marcel Nicolet, Harold I. Schiff, Lance Thomas, Alister Vallance Jones, Richard Wayne, and Gilbert Weill who served as session chairmen during the Institute and contributed greatly to its success by skillfully directing the discussion period in a stimulating manner after each lecture. Many persons contributed to the success of the Institute. Drs Alv Egeland, Donald M. Hunten, Gunther Lange-Hesse, Marcel Nicolet, Harold I. Schiff, Erwin R. Schmerling, Lance Thomas, Alister Vallance Jones, Richard Wayne, and Gilbert Weill were especially helpful in preparing the technical program.




An Introduction to Planetary Atmospheres


Book Description

Planetary atmospheres is a relatively new, interdisciplinary subject that incorporates various areas of the physical and chemical sciences, including geophysics, geophysical fluid dynamics, atmospheric science, astronomy, and astrophysics. Providing a much-needed resource for this cross-disciplinary field, An Introduction to Planetary Atmospheres presents current knowledge on atmospheres and the fundamental mechanisms operating on them. The author treats the topics in a comparative manner among the different solar system bodies—what is known as comparative planetology. Based on an established course, this comprehensive text covers a panorama of solar system bodies and their relevant general properties. It explores the origin and evolution of atmospheres, along with their chemical composition and thermal structure. It also describes cloud formation and properties, mechanisms in thin and upper atmospheres, and meteorology and dynamics. Each chapter focuses on these atmospheric topics in the way classically done for the Earth’s atmosphere and summarizes the most important aspects in the field. The study of planetary atmospheres is fundamental to understanding the origin of the solar system, the formation mechanisms of planets and satellites, and the day-to-day behavior and evolution of Earth’s atmosphere. With many interesting real-world examples, this book offers a unified vision of the chemical and physical processes occurring in planetary atmospheres. Ancillaries are available at www.ajax.ehu.es/planetary_atmospheres/




Atmospheric Evolution on Inhabited and Lifeless Worlds


Book Description

A comprehensive and authoritative text on the formation and evolution of planetary atmospheres, for graduate-level students and researchers.




Planetary Atmospheres


Book Description

This book covers the basic physics of planetary atmospheres, providing an overview, followed by detailed discussion of key topics arranged by physical phenomenon. The emphasis is on acquiring and interpreting measurements, and the basic physics of instruments and models, with key definitions and historical notes given in the footnotes and glossary.




Origin and Evolution of Planetary and Satellite Atmospheres


Book Description

An integrated discussion of the similarities and differences between the atmospheres of various bodies of the solar system, including the Earth.




Planets and Their Atmospheres


Book Description

This work is addressed to advanced undergraduate and graduate students in astronomy, geology, chemistry, meteorology, and the planetary sciences as well as to researchers with pertinent areas of specialization who desire an introduction to the literature across the broad interdisciplinary range of this important topic. Extensive references to the pre-spacecraft literature will be particularly useful to readers interested in the historical development of the field during this century.







The Early Evolution of the Atmospheres of Terrestrial Planets


Book Description

“The Early Evolution of the Atmospheres of Terrestrial Planets” presents the main processes participating in the atmospheric evolution of terrestrial planets. A group of experts in the different fields provide an update of our current knowledge on this topic. Several papers in this book discuss the key role of nitrogen in the atmospheric evolution of terrestrial planets. The earliest setting and evolution of planetary atmospheres of terrestrial planets is directly associated with accretion, chemical differentiation, outgassing, stochastic impacts, and extremely high energy fluxes from their host stars. This book provides an overview of the present knowledge of the initial atmospheric composition of the terrestrial planets. Additionally it includes some papers about the current exoplanet discoveries and provides additional clues to our understanding of Earth’s transition from a hot accretionary phase into a habitable world. All papers included were reviewed by experts in their respective fields. We are living in an epoch of important exoplanet discoveries, but current properties of these exoplanets do not match our scientific predictions using standard terrestrial planet models. This book deals with the main physio-chemical signatures and processes that could be useful to better understand the formation of rocky planets.