Transcript Terrestrial Planets - Physics & Astronomy | SFASU

Terrestrial Planets
Mercury
Similar Bodies
Moon
Mercury
Discovery Scarf
Scarf Formation
Movie
Caloris Basin
Mercury’s Interior
Mercury’s Formation
Mercury Formation
Venus
Pancake Volcanoes
Eruptions of very thick lava
Sif Mons
Active volcano
Coronae
Collapsed volcanic domes
The Surface of Venus
Venus 1
Venus 2
Interior of Venus
Seismic Waves in the Earth
S Waves
(transverse)
Epicenter
P Waves
Inner
Core
Outer Core
S Waves
Mantle
P Waves
(longitudinal)
Interior of the Earth
Inner Core
Mantle
Outer Core
Crust
Interior Composition and
Temperature
Mantle Convection
Plate Tectonics
Mid-Atlantic Ridge
San Andreas Fault
Island Chains
Movie
Craters
Erosion
Double Planet
The Moon
On the Surface
Lunar Maria
Basalts
Lunar Highlands
Breccias
Structure
Lunar Origin

Fission
Earth-Moon formed as one, rapidly rotating
body. Moon spun off of Earth
 Pro
 Average
density matches
 Volume of Moon = Volume of Pacific Ocean
basin
 Con
 Can’t
account for differences in composition
Lunar Origin

Capture
Moon formed elsewhere and was captured
on close approach
 Pro
 can
account for composition differences
 Con
 very
difficult to capture in a nearly circular orbit
Lunar Origin

Binary Accretion
Earth and Moon formed together but as
separate bodies
 Pro
 might
be able to explain differences in
composition
 Con
 most
models are stretched to accommodate
this idea
Lunar Origin

Collisional Accretion (Giant Impact)
Mars-sized body collided with the Earth. The
collision spun off part of the mass which
became the Moon.
Mars
Percival Lowell’s Mars
Cratered Terrain
Sinuous Channels
Valles Marineris
The Tharsis Volcanoes
Viking
Mars Pathfinder
Spirit Rover
Martian Sunset
Mars Interior
Life on
Mars?
 In
1996, a team of U.S. scientists said they
had discovered evidence of ancient, singlecell life on Mars in remains from a meteorite
that plunged to Earth 13,000 years ago.
Face on Mars?
1997
1976
Moons of Mars
Phobos
Deimos
End of Section