Planetary Science

The Science of Planets Around Stars

George H. A. Cole, Michael M. Woolfson

508 pages, parution le 16/05/2002

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Résumé

This book is concerned with structure of planets, the stars they orbit and the interactions between them. There are many planetary systems other than our own, but it is only through a detailed understanding of the relatively accessible bodies in our Solar System that a thorough appreciation of planetary science can be gained. This is particularly pertinent with the recent discovery of extra-solar planets and the desire to understand their formation and the prospect of life on other worlds.

Planetary science courses require an understanding of aspects from a wide range of subjects, including astronomy, astrophysics, geophysics, geology and mineralogy. This text addresses the needs of these wide ranging interests and courses, as it assumes no prior knowledge of astrophysics or geophysics.

The book is written in two parts, making it suitable for students at different levels and approaching planetary science from differing backgrounds. Twelve independent descriptive chapters reveal our Solar System and the diverse bodies it contains; including satellites, planetary rings, asteroids, comets, meteorites and interstellar dust. These chapters are accompanied by 42 detailed topics that discuss specialised subjects in a quantitative manner and will be essential reading for those on higher level courses. These include mineralogy, stellar formation and evolution, Solar System dynamics, atmospheric physics, planetary interiors, thermodynamics, planetary astrophysics and exobiology. Problems and answers are also included.

Contents

The Unity of the universe
The sun and other stars
The planets
The terrestrial planets
The major planets and Pluto
The moon
Satellites and rings
Asteroids
Comets
Meteorites
Dust in the solar system
Theories of the origin and evolution of the solar system
Topics

L'auteur - Michael M. Woolfson

Michael M. Woolfson, Department of Physics, University of York, UK.

Caractéristiques techniques

	PAPIER
Éditeur(s)	Institute of Physics (IOP)
Auteur(s)	George H. A. Cole, Michael M. Woolfson
Parution	16/05/2002
Nb. de pages	508
Format	19 x 24,5
Couverture	Broché
Poids	1192g
Intérieur	Noir et Blanc
EAN13	9780750308151
ISBN13	978-0-7503-0815-1