Growth and Differentiation of Planets
Heterogeneous Growth of Planets
Evidence of Assembly Process? Craters
Craters evident on almost all small “planets”
Even larger planets typically have some
Chapter 17: Terrestrial Planets
Four Stages of Planetary Development
Earth’s Atmosphere: Greenhouse Effect
Examples of craters on the moon
Superposition
(way to get relative ages)
Why do lava flows come out in mare basins?
Problems with the
Condensation Model:
Why is the moon so different than the earth?
Relative size of core in Mercury
Expect Venus to be
similar to Earth
(but it isn’t)
Why does Venus have much more CO2 in atmosphere than Earth?
Surface Relief of Venus from Radar
Lots of Martian Science Fiction
Mars and the Pattern of
Geologic Activity
and Atmospheric Loss
Which planets can retain which gasses?
Ancient River
Channels?
(note channels older than some craters – by superposition)
Recent liquid water?
(water seeping out of underground “aquifer” ?)