Planets and Planetary Systems

Planets and Planetary Systems
Author: Stephen Eales
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 204
Release: 2009-08-03
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0470016922

Planetary Science is an exciting, fast-moving, interdisciplinary field with courses taught in a wide range of departments, including astronomy, physics, chemistry, earth sciences and biology. Planets and Planetary Systems is a well-written, concise introductory textbook on the science of planets within our own and other solar systems. Keeping mathematics to a minimum, assuming only a rudimentary knowledge of calculus, the book begins with a description of the basic properties of the planets in our solar systems, and then moves on to compare them with what is known about planets in other solar systems. It continues by looking at the surfaces, interiors and atmospheres of the planets and then covers the dynamics and origin of planetary systems. The book closes with a look at the role of life in planetary systems. · An accessible, concise introduction to planets and planetary systems · Uses insights from all the disciplines underlying planetary science · Incorporates results from recent planetary space missions, such as Cassini to Saturn and a number of missions to Mars · Well illustrated throughout, including a colour plate section Planets and Planetary Systems is invaluable to students taking courses in planetary science across a wide range of disciplines and of interest to researchers and many keen amateur astronomers, needing an up-to-date introduction to this exciting subject.

The Biological Universe

The Biological Universe
Author: Wallace Arthur
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 361
Release: 2020-09-24
Genre: Nature
ISBN: 1108836941

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

Planetary Systems Now

Planetary Systems Now
Author: Luisa M Lara
Publisher: World Scientific
Total Pages: 438
Release: 2023-03-23
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1800613156

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 Ring Systems

Planetary Ring Systems
Author: Matthew S. Tiscareno
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 610
Release: 2018-03-22
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1108548288

Planetary rings are among the most intriguing structures of our solar system and have fascinated generations of astronomers. Collating emerging knowledge in the field, this volume reviews our current understanding of ring systems with reference to the rings of Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and more. Written by leading experts, the history of ring research and the basics of ring–particle orbits is followed by a review of the known planetary ring systems. All aspects of ring system science are described in detail, including specific dynamical processes, types of structures, thermal properties and their origins, and investigations using computer simulations and laboratory experiments. The concluding chapters discuss the prospects of future missions to planetary rings, the ways in which ring science informs and is informed by the study of other astrophysical disks, and a perspective on the field's future. Researchers of all levels will benefit from this thorough and engaging presentation.

Planetary Systems: A Very Short Introduction

Planetary Systems: A Very Short Introduction
Author: Raymond T. Pierrehumbert
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 161
Release: 2021-12-09
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0192577948

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.

Earth as an Evolving Planetary System

Earth as an Evolving Planetary System
Author: Kent C. Condie
Publisher: Academic Press
Total Pages: 593
Release: 2011-08-22
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0123852285

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

Encyclopedia of the Solar System

Encyclopedia of the Solar System
Author: Lucy-Ann McFadden
Publisher: Elsevier
Total Pages: 987
Release: 2006-12-18
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0080474985

Long before Galileo published his discoveries about Jupiter, lunar craters, and the Milky Way in the Starry Messenger in 1610, people were fascinated with the planets and stars around them. That interest continues today, and scientists are making new discoveries at an astounding rate. Ancient lake beds on Mars, robotic spacecraft missions, and new definitions of planets now dominate the news. How can you take it all in? Start with the new Encyclopedia of the Solar System, Second Edition. This self-contained reference follows the trail blazed by the bestselling first edition. It provides a framework for understanding the origin and evolution of the solar system, historical discoveries, and details about planetary bodies and how they interact—and has jumped light years ahead in terms of new information and visual impact. Offering more than 50% new material, the Encyclopedia includes the latest explorations and observations, hundreds of new color digital images and illustrations, and more than 1,000 pages. It stands alone as the definitive work in this field, and will serve as a modern messenger of scientific discovery and provide a look into the future of our solar system. · Forty-seven chapters from 75+ eminent authors review fundamental topics as well as new models, theories, and discussions · Each entry is detailed and scientifically rigorous, yet accessible to undergraduate students and amateur astronomers · More than 700 full-color digital images and diagrams from current space missions and observatories amplify the chapters · Thematic chapters provide up-to-date coverage, including a discussion on the new International Astronomical Union (IAU) vote on the definition of a planet · Information is easily accessible with numerous cross-references and a full glossary and index

Planetary Systems

Planetary Systems
Author: Marc Ollivier
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 351
Release: 2008-11-27
Genre: Science
ISBN: 3540757481

Over the past ten years, the discovery of extrasolar planets has opened a new field of astronomy, and this area of research is rapidly growing, from both the observational and theoretical point of view. The presence of many giant exoplanets in the close vicinity of their star shows that these newly discovered planetary systems are very different from the solar system. New theoretical models are being developed in order to understand their formation scenarios, and new observational methods are being implemented to increase the sensitivity of exoplanet detections. In the present book, the authors address the question of planetary systems from all aspects. Starting from the facts (the detection of more than 300 extraterrestrial planets), they first describe the various methods used for these discoveries and propose a synthetic analysis of their global properties. They then consider the observations of young stars and circumstellar disks and address the case of the solar system as a specific example, different from the newly discovered systems. Then the study of planetary systems and of exoplanets is presented from a more theoretical point of view. The book ends with an outlook to future astronomical projects, and a description of the search for life on exoplanets. This book addresses students and researchers who wish to better understand this newly expanding field of research.

Planetary Systems from the Ancient Greeks to Kepler

Planetary Systems from the Ancient Greeks to Kepler
Author: Theodor S. Jacobsen
Publisher: University of Washington Press
Total Pages: 274
Release: 2018-03-23
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0295997591

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.

The Planetary System

The Planetary System
Author: David Morrison
Publisher: Benjamin-Cummings Publishing Company
Total Pages: 576
Release: 2003
Genre: Science
ISBN:

Co-authors Morrison and Owen are leading researchers in planetary astronomy today, and this book reflects their expertise and excitement for the subject. Drawing on recent findings, this authoritative, up-to-date book gives a straightforward account of our solar system. Written in an informal style with minimal use of mathematics, this book is ideal for beginning non-science readers.Since publication of the previous edition ofThe Planetary System, the pace of planetary exploration and new discoveries has accelerated. Also, the new multidisciplinary field of astrobiology has emerged and now provides a fruitful perspective for the study of the origin, evolution, and distribution of life within our solar system and other planetary systems. As scientists who have participated in the definition and development of astrobiology, Morrison and Owen have integrated these new perspectives, as well as many other discoveries, into this new edition to make it once again undisputedly the most authoritative, up-to-date, and exciting planetary book available.For anyone interested in astronomy or planetary astronomy.