Astronomy 1021 Lecture 10: Planetary Geology

• School: Western University
• Department: Astronomy
• Course: Astronomy 1021
• Professor: Sarah Gallagher

Document Summary

What processes shape planetary surfaces: recognize, describe, and give examples of the four main geological processes that shape planetary surfaces. Seismology: we can infer the structure of earth"s interior by using seismic waves. Planetary interiors have three regions because of differentiation: differentiation: material must be made of a mixture of materials and materials inside must be able to flow, rocky crust, mantle, metal core. Cooling processes: convection: transports heat/hot material rises, cool material falls, conduction: transfers heat from hot material to cool material. Volcanism: molten rock from interiors rising through the surface, types of volcanism. Volcanic plains: lava flattens out before solidifying. Shield volcanoes: very tall but not steep // lava cannot spread out completely. Stratovolcanoes: a volcano built of alternate levels ash and lava. Tectonics: surface itself is moving around. Thursday, november 19, 2015: activity of the surface by the elements (wind, water, ice, worksheet surface processes when and how much ***