NATS 1880 Chapter Notes -Runaway Greenhouse Effect, Greenhouse Effect, Eugenius Warming
17 May 2013
School
Department
Course
Professor
Document Summary
The role of distance from a central star. When considering minimum distance, we must account solar heating and resulting processes that evaporate water. When considering maximum distances, we must consider processes that weaken greenhouse warming. Inner boundary marks place where runaway greenhouse is triggered whereas outer boundary mars surface water freezing. The outer boundary marks place where surface water will freeze. Brighter stars have wider and distance habitable zones. Brighter stars are short-lived which may not give enough time for biology to develop. Small size of mars cooled interior until it had no convection and could not generate mag field. A minimum size exists (for plate tectonics to provide co2 cycle). Thus it must be big enough for plate tectonics. But venus poses a problem, as it is big enough but due to runaway greenhouse, high temperatures bake water out of rock making it too stiff for subduction. Taking account only runaway greenhouse effect, habitable inner boundary is 0. 84 au.
