01:750:109 Lecture Notes - Lecture 11: Solar Wind, Kuiper Belt, Oort Cloud
20 Oct 2016
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Differentiation: when the planet is very hot, heavier elements (iron, metals) sink to the center, and lighter elements (silica, rock) oat above. Heavy bombardment: leftover planetesimals bombarded other objects in the late stages of solar system formation, craters, water and atmospheric gases. Exceptions to the rules: origins of earth"s water. Tuesday, october 18, 2016: water may have come to earth by way of icy planetesimals, captured moons, unusual moons of some planets may be capture planetesimals. Mercury: made of metal and rock; large iron core, desolate, cratered; long, tall, steep cliffs, very hot and very cold: 425 c (day) -170 c (night, orbit is 90 earth days, rotation period is 60 earth days. Venus: nearly identical i size to earth; surface hidden by clouds, hellish conditions due to an extreme greenhouse effect, even hotter than mercury: 470 c, day and night. Earth: an oasis of life, the only surface liquid water in the solar system, a surprisingly large moon.
