Planetary Systems Now


Book Description

Planetary Systems Now offers a broad, interdisciplinary perspective and introduction to the latest results from leading experts in each field. It offers an unusually wide range of research on topics both inside and outside of the solar system, as well as the most recent results from ongoing ground- and space-based investigations. Experts in their field come together in this volume to discuss solar system exploration with its most recent space missions, theories and evidence concerning planetary system formation, and the nature and formation of exoplanets and exoplanetary systems.Including both questions and answers, this book is intended to be a readable, heavily-illustrated stepping-off point for advanced undergraduate students, graduate students, and scientists beginning research in planetary and exoplanetary science topics.




Planetary Systems: A Very Short Introduction


Book Description

Not long ago, the Solar System was the only example of a planetary system - a star and the bodies orbiting it - that we knew. Now, we know thousands of planetary systems, and have even been able to observe planetary systems at the moment of their birth. This Very Short Introduction explores this new frontier, incorporating the latest research. The book takes the reader on a journey through the grand sweep of time, from the moment galaxies begin to form after the Big Bang to trillions of years in the future when the Universe will be a dilute soup of dim galaxies populated mostly by red dwarf stars. Throughout, Raymond T. Pierrehumbert introduces the latest insights gained from a new generation of telescopes that catch planetary systems at the moment of formation, and to the theoretical advances that attempt to make sense of these observations. He explains how the elements that make up life and the planets on which life can live are forged in the interiors of dying stars, and make their way into rocky planets. He also explores the vast array of newly discovered planets orbiting stars other than our own, and explains the factors that determine their climates. Finally, he reveals what determines how long planetary systems can live, and what happens in their end-times. Very Short Introductions: Brilliant, Sharp, Inspiring ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.




Discovering Pluto


Book Description

The story of Pluto and its largest moon, from discovery through the New Horizons flyby--Provided by publisher.




The Biological Universe


Book Description

Current state of play in astrobiology, including exoplanets and their atmospheres, habitable zones and the likelihood of evolution elsewhere.




Exoplanet Science Strategy


Book Description

The past decade has delivered remarkable discoveries in the study of exoplanets. Hand-in-hand with these advances, a theoretical understanding of the myriad of processes that dictate the formation and evolution of planets has matured, spurred on by the avalanche of unexpected discoveries. Appreciation of the factors that make a planet hospitable to life has grown in sophistication, as has understanding of the context for biosignatures, the remotely detectable aspects of a planet's atmosphere or surface that reveal the presence of life. Exoplanet Science Strategy highlights strategic priorities for large, coordinated efforts that will support the scientific goals of the broad exoplanet science community. This report outlines a strategic plan that will answer lingering questions through a combination of large, ambitious community-supported efforts and support for diverse, creative, community-driven investigator research.




Planetary Science


Book Description

Since the publication of the popular first edition, stellar and planetary scientists have produced numerous new observations, theories, and interpretations, including the "demotion" of our former ninth planet Pluto as a dwarf planet. Covering all of these new discoveries, Planetary Science: The Science of Planets around Stars, Second Edition explains the science associated with the planets, the stars they orbit, and the interactions between them. It examines the formation, evolution, and death of stars and the properties of the Sun that influence the planets of the Solar System. Along with more problems, this second edition adds new material and improves some analytical treatments. The book consists of two main components. For students unfamiliar with stellar properties or the overall structure of the Solar System, the first part gives a general picture of the system as a whole and the interrelationships of the bodies within it. It presents an overview of the nature of stars and the Solar System as well as important results obtained by scientific analysis. The second component is a set of 43 appendices describing the majority of the underlying science required to explain the main features of the Solar System. These appendices cover a variety of specialized topics, from mineralogy to the mechanical interactions of radiation and matter. End-of-chapter problems give students a quantitative understanding of stellar and solar system phenomena. The text shows how useful estimates of various quantities can be made even when characteristics of the system are not known with any precision. While the problems can be completed with a hand calculator, students are encouraged to use the Fortran computer programs provided on the book’s CRC Press web page. Avoiding excessive details, this textbook offers a comprehensive account of stellar and planetary topics. It is suitable for students from a range of disciplines, including astronomy, geology, and earth sciences. The book provides students with an understanding of the nature of the Solar System and the influences that govern its behavior, helping them develop an appreciation of the forces that can influence our planet in the future.




Earth as an Evolving Planetary System


Book Description

Earth as an Evolving Planetary System, Second Edition, explores key topics and questions relating to the evolution of the Earth's crust and mantle over the last four billion years. This updated edition features exciting new information on Earth and planetary evolution and examines how all subsystems in our planet—crust, mantle, core, atmosphere, oceans and life—have worked together and changed over time. It synthesizes data from the fields of oceanography, geophysics, planetology, and geochemistry to address Earth's evolution. This volume consists of 10 chapters, including two new ones that deal with the Supercontinent Cycle and on Great Events in Earth history. There are also new and updated sections on Earth's thermal history, planetary volcanism, planetary crusts, the onset of plate tectonics, changing composition of the oceans and atmosphere, and paleoclimatic regimes. In addition, the book now includes new tomographic data tracking plume tails into the deep mantle. This book is intended for advanced undergraduate and graduate students in Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, with a basic knowledge of geology, biology, chemistry, and physics. It also may serve as a reference tool for structural geologists and professionals in related disciplines who want to look at the Earth in a broader perspective. - Kent Condie's corresponding interactive CD, Plate Tectonics and How the Earth Works, can be purchased from Tasa Graphic Arts here: http://www.tasagraphicarts.com/progptearth.html - Two new chapters on the Supercontinent Cycle and on Great Events in Earth history - New and updated sections on Earth's thermal history, planetary volcanism, planetary crusts, the onset of plate tectonics, changing composition of the oceans and atmosphere, and paleoclimatic regimes - Also new in this Second Edition: the lower mantle and the role of the post-perovskite transition, the role of water in the mantle, new tomographic data tracking plume tails into the deep mantle, Euxinia in Proterozoic oceans, The Hadean, A crustal age gap at 2.4-2.2 Ga, and continental growth




Planetary Systems


Book Description

Takes the reader on a journey through time and space, exploring how planetary systems such as ours form and evolve, and the conditions under which life may arise. Not long ago, the Solar System was the only example of a planetary system that we knew. Now, we know of thousands of planetary systems, and have even been able to observe the moment of their birth. This book reveals the astonishing variety of planetary systems out there. It explores the insights gained about these other worlds from a new generation of telescopes. --




Planetary Systems from the Ancient Greeks to Kepler


Book Description

In Planetary Systems from the Ancient Greeks, Theodor S. Kepler seeks to present a bird’s-eye view of the astronomical nature of the work of Newton’s predecessors. Rather than dwelling only on the influence of each thinker’s great ideas, Jacobsen tracks the actual details of their development by investigating the various systems involved and how they were used. As such, this book is an attempt to describe the specific processes through which (pre-Newtonian) astronomers derived a knowledge of the cosmos by observing the heavens and trying out detailed models to account for their observations. Planetary Systems from the Ancient Greeks contributes to scholarship on historical astronomy by offering an approach between that of popular, exact astronomical information and formal, fully referenced scholarly investigation. Each chapter is organized around a key astronomer (Eudoxus, Hipparchus, Ptolemy, Copernicus, Tycho Brahe, and Kepler) and offers relevant biographical introduction, exposition of the astronomical system, and assessment of their contributions. As Jacobsen suggests, the present elementary study of these historical astronomical systems also yields valuable insights for visualizing the salient facts of general astronomy.




Vision and Voyages for Planetary Science in the Decade 2013-2022


Book Description

In recent years, planetary science has seen a tremendous growth in new knowledge. Deposits of water ice exist at the Moon's poles. Discoveries on the surface of Mars point to an early warm wet climate, and perhaps conditions under which life could have emerged. Liquid methane rain falls on Saturn's moon Titan, creating rivers, lakes, and geologic landscapes with uncanny resemblances to Earth's. Vision and Voyages for Planetary Science in the Decade 2013-2022 surveys the current state of knowledge of the solar system and recommends a suite of planetary science flagship missions for the decade 2013-2022 that could provide a steady stream of important new discoveries about the solar system. Research priorities defined in the report were selected through a rigorous review that included input from five expert panels. NASA's highest priority large mission should be the Mars Astrobiology Explorer Cacher (MAX-C), a mission to Mars that could help determine whether the planet ever supported life and could also help answer questions about its geologic and climatic history. Other projects should include a mission to Jupiter's icy moon Europa and its subsurface ocean, and the Uranus Orbiter and Probe mission to investigate that planet's interior structure, atmosphere, and composition. For medium-size missions, Vision and Voyages for Planetary Science in the Decade 2013-2022 recommends that NASA select two new missions to be included in its New Frontiers program, which explores the solar system with frequent, mid-size spacecraft missions. If NASA cannot stay within budget for any of these proposed flagship projects, it should focus on smaller, less expensive missions first. Vision and Voyages for Planetary Science in the Decade 2013-2022 suggests that the National Science Foundation expand its funding for existing laboratories and establish new facilities as needed. It also recommends that the program enlist the participation of international partners. This report is a vital resource for government agencies supporting space science, the planetary science community, and the public.