Comparative planetary science, the Glossary
Comparative planetary science or comparative planetology is a branch of space science and planetary science in which different natural processes and systems are studied by their effects and phenomena on and between multiple bodies.[1]
Table of Contents
103 relations: Allotropes of sulfur, Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Arie Poldervaart, Asteroid, Asteroid family, Astrobiology, Astronomical object, Astronomical transit, Atmosphere of Titan, Atmosphere of Venus, Atmospheric escape, Aurora, Axial tilt, Basalt, Biosignature, Bolide, Brown dwarf, Cambridge University Press, Cassini–Huygens, Centaur (small Solar System body), Ceres (dwarf planet), Chaos terrain, Coma, Comet, Crater counting, Crustal recycling, Cryovolcano, Diapir, Earthquake, Enceladus, Endorheic basin, Eris (dwarf planet), Europa (moon), Europlanet, Extraterrestrial liquid water, Extremophile, Fossa (planetary nomenclature), Freezing-point depression, Ganymede (moon), Gas giant, George Gamow, Giant-impact hypothesis, Gravity assist, Hadley cell, Hydrogeology, Ice giant, Impactite, Ion implantation, Kelvin–Helmholtz mechanism, Kirkwood gap, ... Expand index (53 more) »
Allotropes of sulfur
The element sulfur exists as many allotropes.
See Comparative planetary science and Allotropes of sulfur
Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences
Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences is an annual peer-reviewed scientific journal published by Annual Reviews, which broadly covers Earth and planetary sciences, including geology, atmospheric sciences, climate, geophysics, environmental science, geological hazards, geodynamics, planet formation, and solar system origins.
See Comparative planetary science and Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences
Arie Poldervaart
Arie Poldervaart (6 July 1918 in Bandung, Indonesia – 28 October 1964 in Manhattan) was a Dutch petrologist and leading expert on igneous and metamorphic rocks.
See Comparative planetary science and Arie Poldervaart
Asteroid
An asteroid is a minor planet—an object that is neither a true planet nor an identified comet— that orbits within the inner Solar System.
See Comparative planetary science and Asteroid
Asteroid family
An asteroid family is a population of asteroids that share similar proper orbital elements, such as semimajor axis, eccentricity, and orbital inclination.
See Comparative planetary science and Asteroid family
Astrobiology
Astrobiology is a scientific field within the life and environmental sciences that studies the origins, early evolution, distribution, and future of life in the universe by investigating its deterministic conditions and contingent events.
See Comparative planetary science and Astrobiology
Astronomical object
An astronomical object, celestial object, stellar object or heavenly body is a naturally occurring physical entity, association, or structure that exists within the observable universe.
See Comparative planetary science and Astronomical object
Astronomical transit
In astronomy, a transit (or astronomical transit) is the passage of a celestial body directly between a larger body and the observer.
See Comparative planetary science and Astronomical transit
Atmosphere of Titan
The atmosphere of Titan is the dense layer of gases surrounding Titan, the largest moon of Saturn.
See Comparative planetary science and Atmosphere of Titan
Atmosphere of Venus
The atmosphere of Venus is the very dense layer of gasses surrounding the planet Venus.
See Comparative planetary science and Atmosphere of Venus
Atmospheric escape
Atmospheric escape is the loss of planetary atmospheric gases to outer space.
See Comparative planetary science and Atmospheric escape
Aurora
An aurora (aurorae or auroras), also commonly known as the northern lights (aurora borealis) or southern lights (aurora australis), is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Comparative planetary science and aurora are planetary science.
See Comparative planetary science and Aurora
Axial tilt
In astronomy, axial tilt, also known as obliquity, is the angle between an object's rotational axis and its orbital axis, which is the line perpendicular to its orbital plane; equivalently, it is the angle between its equatorial plane and orbital plane. Comparative planetary science and axial tilt are planetary science.
See Comparative planetary science and Axial tilt
Basalt
Basalt is an aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the surface of a rocky planet or moon.
See Comparative planetary science and Basalt
Biosignature
A biosignature (sometimes called chemical fossil or molecular fossil) is any substance, such as an element, isotope, molecule, or phenomenon, that provides scientific evidence of past or present life on a planet.
See Comparative planetary science and Biosignature
Bolide
A bolide is normally taken to mean an exceptionally bright meteor, but the term is subject to more than one definition, according to context.
See Comparative planetary science and Bolide
Brown dwarf
Brown dwarfs are substellar objects that have more mass than the biggest gas giant planets, but less than the least massive main-sequence stars.
See Comparative planetary science and Brown dwarf
Cambridge University Press
Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge.
See Comparative planetary science and Cambridge University Press
Cassini–Huygens
Cassini–Huygens, commonly called Cassini, was a space-research mission by NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), and the Italian Space Agency (ASI) to send a space probe to study the planet Saturn and its system, including its rings and natural satellites.
See Comparative planetary science and Cassini–Huygens
Centaur (small Solar System body)
In planetary astronomy, a centaur is a small Solar System body that orbits the Sun between Jupiter and Neptune and crosses the orbits of one or more of the giant planets.
See Comparative planetary science and Centaur (small Solar System body)
Ceres (dwarf planet)
Ceres (minor-planet designation: 1 Ceres) is a dwarf planet in the middle main asteroid belt between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.
See Comparative planetary science and Ceres (dwarf planet)
Chaos terrain
In astrogeology, chaos terrain, or chaotic terrain, is a planetary surface area where features such as ridges, cracks, and plains appear jumbled and enmeshed with one another.
See Comparative planetary science and Chaos terrain
Coma
A coma is a deep state of prolonged unconsciousness in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to painful stimuli, light, or sound, lacks a normal wake-sleep cycle and does not initiate voluntary actions.
See Comparative planetary science and Coma
Comet
A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that warms and begins to release gases when passing close to the Sun, a process called outgassing.
See Comparative planetary science and Comet
Crater counting
Crater counting is a method for estimating the age of a planet's surface based upon the assumptions that when a piece of planetary surface is new, then it has no impact craters; impact craters accumulate after that at a rate that is assumed known.
See Comparative planetary science and Crater counting
Crustal recycling
Crustal recycling is a tectonic process by which surface material from the lithosphere is recycled into the mantle by subduction erosion or delamination.
See Comparative planetary science and Crustal recycling
Cryovolcano
A cryovolcano (sometimes informally referred to as an ice volcano) is a type of volcano that erupts gases and volatile material such as liquid water, ammonia, and hydrocarbons.
See Comparative planetary science and Cryovolcano
Diapir
A diapir is a type of intrusion in which a more mobile and ductilely deformable material is forced into brittle overlying rocks.
See Comparative planetary science and Diapir
Earthquake
An earthquakealso called a quake, tremor, or tembloris the shaking of the Earth's surface resulting from a sudden release of energy in the lithosphere that creates seismic waves.
See Comparative planetary science and Earthquake
Enceladus
Enceladus is the sixth-largest moon of Saturn and the 19th-largest in the Solar System.
See Comparative planetary science and Enceladus
Endorheic basin
An endorheic basin (also endoreic basin and endorreic basin) is a drainage basin that normally retains water and allows no outflow to other, external bodies of water (e.g. rivers and oceans); instead, the water drainage flows into permanent and seasonal lakes and swamps that equilibrate through evaporation.
See Comparative planetary science and Endorheic basin
Eris (dwarf planet)
Eris (minor-planet designation: 136199 Eris) is the most massive and second-largest known dwarf planet in the Solar System.
See Comparative planetary science and Eris (dwarf planet)
Europa (moon)
Europa, or Jupiter II, is the smallest of the four Galilean moons orbiting Jupiter, and the sixth-closest to the planet of all the 95 known moons of Jupiter.
See Comparative planetary science and Europa (moon)
Europlanet
Europlanet is a network linking planetary scientists from across Europe. Comparative planetary science and Europlanet are planetary science.
See Comparative planetary science and Europlanet
Extraterrestrial liquid water is water in its liquid state that naturally occurs outside Earth.
See Comparative planetary science and Extraterrestrial liquid water
Extremophile
An extremophile is an organism that is able to live (or in some cases thrive) in extreme environments, i.e., environments with conditions approaching or stretching the limits of what known life can adapt to, such as extreme temperature, pressure, radiation, salinity, or pH level.
See Comparative planetary science and Extremophile
Fossa (planetary nomenclature)
In planetary nomenclature, a fossa (pl. fossae) is a long, narrow depression (trough) on the surface of an extraterrestrial body, such as a planet or moon.
See Comparative planetary science and Fossa (planetary nomenclature)
Freezing-point depression
Freezing-point depression is a drop in the maximum temperature at which a substance freezes, caused when a smaller amount of another, non-volatile substance is added.
See Comparative planetary science and Freezing-point depression
Ganymede (moon)
Ganymede, or Jupiter III, is the largest and most massive natural satellite of Jupiter and in the Solar System.
See Comparative planetary science and Ganymede (moon)
Gas giant
A gas giant is a giant planet composed mainly of hydrogen and helium.
See Comparative planetary science and Gas giant
George Gamow
George Gamow (sometimes Gammoff; born Georgiy Antonovich Gamov; Георгий Антонович Гамов; 4 March 1904 – 19 August 1968) was a Soviet and American polymath, theoretical physicist and cosmologist.
See Comparative planetary science and George Gamow
Giant-impact hypothesis
The giant-impact hypothesis, sometimes called the Theia Impact, is an astrogeology hypothesis for the formation of the Moon first proposed in 1946 by Canadian geologist Reginald Daly.
See Comparative planetary science and Giant-impact hypothesis
Gravity assist
A gravity assist, gravity assist maneuver, swing-by, or generally a gravitational slingshot in orbital mechanics, is a type of spaceflight flyby which makes use of the relative movement (e.g. orbit around the Sun) and gravity of a planet or other astronomical object to alter the path and speed of a spacecraft, typically to save propellant and reduce expense.
See Comparative planetary science and Gravity assist
Hadley cell
The Hadley cell, also known as the Hadley circulation, is a global-scale tropical atmospheric circulation that features air rising near the equator, flowing poleward near the tropopause at a height of above the Earth's surface, cooling and descending in the subtropics at around 25 degrees latitude, and then returning equatorward near the surface.
See Comparative planetary science and Hadley cell
Hydrogeology
Hydrogeology (hydro- meaning water, and -geology meaning the study of the Earth) is the area of geology that deals with the distribution and movement of groundwater in the soil and rocks of the Earth's crust (commonly in aquifers).
See Comparative planetary science and Hydrogeology
Ice giant
An ice giant is a giant planet composed mainly of elements heavier than hydrogen and helium, such as oxygen, carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur.
See Comparative planetary science and Ice giant
Impactite
Impactite is rock created or modified by one or more impacts of a meteorite.
See Comparative planetary science and Impactite
Ion implantation
Ion implantation is a low-temperature process by which ions of one element are accelerated into a solid target, thereby changing the physical, chemical, or electrical properties of the target.
See Comparative planetary science and Ion implantation
Kelvin–Helmholtz mechanism
The Kelvin–Helmholtz mechanism is an astronomical process that occurs when the surface of a star or a planet cools.
See Comparative planetary science and Kelvin–Helmholtz mechanism
Kirkwood gap
A Kirkwood gap is a gap or dip in the distribution of the semi-major axes (or equivalently of the orbital periods) of the orbits of main-belt asteroids.
See Comparative planetary science and Kirkwood gap
Kuiper belt
The Kuiper belt is a circumstellar disc in the outer Solar System, extending from the orbit of Neptune at 30 astronomical units (AU) to approximately 50 AU from the Sun.
See Comparative planetary science and Kuiper belt
Late Heavy Bombardment
The Late Heavy Bombardment (LHB), or lunar cataclysm, is a hypothesized astronomical event thought to have occurred approximately 4.1 to 3.8 billion years (Ga) ago, at a time corresponding to the Neohadean and Eoarchean eras on Earth.
See Comparative planetary science and Late Heavy Bombardment
Lava
Lava is molten or partially molten rock (magma) that has been expelled from the interior of a terrestrial planet (such as Earth) or a moon onto its surface.
See Comparative planetary science and Lava
Lava dome
In volcanology, a lava dome is a circular, mound-shaped protrusion resulting from the slow extrusion of viscous lava from a volcano.
See Comparative planetary science and Lava dome
Lava planet
A lava planet is a type of terrestrial planet, with a surface mostly or entirely covered by molten lava.
See Comparative planetary science and Lava planet
Libration
In lunar astronomy, libration is the cyclic variation in the apparent position of the Moon perceived by Earth-bound observers and caused by changes between the orbital and rotational planes of the moon.
See Comparative planetary science and Libration
Lightning
Lightning is a natural phenomenon formed by electrostatic discharges through the atmosphere between two electrically charged regions, either both in the atmosphere or one in the atmosphere and one on the ground, temporarily neutralizing these in a near-instantaneous release of an average of between 200 megajoules and 7 gigajoules of energy, depending on the type.
See Comparative planetary science and Lightning
List of Mars analogs
This is list of Mars analogs, which simulate aspects of the conditions human beings could experience during a future mission to Mars, or different aspects of Mars such as its materials or conditions.
See Comparative planetary science and List of Mars analogs
Lunar Crater National Natural Landmark
Lunar Crater National Natural Landmark recognizes the Lunar Crater volcanic field in Nye County, central Nevada, as a United States National Natural Landmark.
See Comparative planetary science and Lunar Crater National Natural Landmark
Lunar mare
The lunar maria (mare) are large, dark, basaltic plains on Earth's Moon, formed by lava flowing into ancient impact basins.
See Comparative planetary science and Lunar mare
Lunar swirls
Lunar swirls are enigmatic features found across the Moon's surface, which are characterized by having a high albedo, appearing optically immature (i.e. having the optical characteristics of a relatively young regolith), and (often) having a sinuous shape.
See Comparative planetary science and Lunar swirls
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun.
See Comparative planetary science and Mars
MARSIS
MARSIS (Mars Advanced Radar for Subsurface and Ionosphere Sounding) is a low frequency, pulse-limited radar sounder and altimeter developed by the University of Rome La Sapienza and Alenia Spazio (today Thales Alenia Space Italy).
See Comparative planetary science and MARSIS
Martian meteorite
A Martian meteorite is a rock that formed on Mars, was ejected from the planet by an impact event, and traversed interplanetary space before landing on Earth as a meteorite.
See Comparative planetary science and Martian meteorite
Miranda (moon)
Miranda, also designated Uranus V, is the smallest and innermost of Uranus's five round satellites.
See Comparative planetary science and Miranda (moon)
Moons of Neptune
The planet Neptune has 16 known moons, which are named for minor water deities and a water creature in Greek mythology.
See Comparative planetary science and Moons of Neptune
Ocean world
An ocean world, ocean planet or water world is a type of planet that contains a substantial amount of water in the form of oceans, as part of its hydrosphere, either beneath the surface, as subsurface oceans, or on the surface, potentially submerging all dry land.
See Comparative planetary science and Ocean world
Outline of space science
The following outline is provided as an overview and topical guide to space science: Space science – field that encompasses all of the scientific disciplines that involve space exploration and study natural phenomena and physical bodies occurring in outer space, such as space medicine and astrobiology. Comparative planetary science and outline of space science are space science.
See Comparative planetary science and Outline of space science
Pancake dome
A pancake dome is an unusual type of lava dome found on the planet Venus.
See Comparative planetary science and Pancake dome
Pedestal crater
In planetary geology, a pedestal crater is a crater with its ejecta sitting above the surrounding terrain and thereby forming a raised platform (like a pedestal).
See Comparative planetary science and Pedestal crater
Planetary core
A planetary core consists of the innermost layers of a planet.
See Comparative planetary science and Planetary core
Planetary differentiation
In planetary science, planetary differentiation is the process by which the chemical elements of a planetary body accumulate in different areas of that body, due to their physical or chemical behavior (e.g. density and chemical affinities). Comparative planetary science and planetary differentiation are planetary science.
See Comparative planetary science and Planetary differentiation
Planetary flyby
A planetary flyby is the act of sending a space probe past a planet or a dwarf planet close enough to record scientific data.
See Comparative planetary science and Planetary flyby
Planetary science
Planetary science (or more rarely, planetology) is the scientific study of planets (including Earth), celestial bodies (such as moons, asteroids, comets) and planetary systems (in particular those of the Solar System) and the processes of their formation. Comparative planetary science and planetary science are space science.
See Comparative planetary science and Planetary science
Planetary system
A planetary system is a set of gravitationally bound non-stellar objects in or out of orbit around a star or star system.
See Comparative planetary science and Planetary system
Pluto
Pluto (minor-planet designation: 134340 Pluto) is a dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt, a ring of bodies beyond the orbit of Neptune.
See Comparative planetary science and Pluto
Polar vortex
A circumpolar vortex, or simply polar vortex, is a large region of cold, rotating air; polar vortices encircle both of Earth's polar regions.
See Comparative planetary science and Polar vortex
Radioactive decay
Radioactive decay (also known as nuclear decay, radioactivity, radioactive disintegration, or nuclear disintegration) is the process by which an unstable atomic nucleus loses energy by radiation.
See Comparative planetary science and Radioactive decay
Radionuclide
A radionuclide (radioactive nuclide, radioisotope or radioactive isotope) is a nuclide that has excess numbers of either neutrons or protons, giving it excess nuclear energy, and making it unstable.
See Comparative planetary science and Radionuclide
Rhea (moon)
Rhea is the second-largest moon of Saturn and the ninth-largest moon in the Solar System, with a surface area that is comparable to the area of Australia.
See Comparative planetary science and Rhea (moon)
Rings of Saturn
The rings of Saturn are the most extensive and complex ring system of any planet in the Solar System.
See Comparative planetary science and Rings of Saturn
Seasonal flows on warm Martian slopes
Seasonal flows on warm Martian slopes (also called recurring slope lineae, recurrent slope lineae and RSL) are thought to be salty water flows occurring during the warmest months on Mars, or alternatively, dry grains that "flow" downslope of at least 27 degrees.
See Comparative planetary science and Seasonal flows on warm Martian slopes
Seismometer
A seismometer is an instrument that responds to ground displacement and shaking such as caused by quakes, volcanic eruptions, and explosions.
See Comparative planetary science and Seismometer
Shatter cone
Shatter cones are rare geological features that are only known to form in the bedrock beneath meteorite impact craters or underground nuclear explosions.
See Comparative planetary science and Shatter cone
Shocked quartz
Shocked quartz is a form of quartz that has a microscopic structure that is different from normal quartz.
See Comparative planetary science and Shocked quartz
Silicate
A silicate is any member of a family of polyatomic anions consisting of silicon and oxygen, usually with the general formula, where.
See Comparative planetary science and Silicate
Small Solar System body
A small Solar System body (SSSB) is an object in the Solar System that is neither a planet, a dwarf planet, nor a natural satellite.
See Comparative planetary science and Small Solar System body
Sodium tail of the Moon
The Moon has been shown to have a "tail" of sodium atoms too faint to be detected by the human eye.
See Comparative planetary science and Sodium tail of the Moon
Solar wind
The solar wind is a stream of charged particles released from the Sun's outermost atmospheric layer, the corona.
See Comparative planetary science and Solar wind
Space weathering
Space weathering is the type of weathering that occurs to any object exposed to the harsh environment of outer space. Comparative planetary science and space weathering are planetary science and space science.
See Comparative planetary science and Space weathering
Space.com
Space.com is an online publication focused on space exploration, astronomy, skywatching and entertainment, with editorial teams based in the United States and United Kingdom.
See Comparative planetary science and Space.com
Spectroscopy
Spectroscopy is the field of study that measures and interprets electromagnetic spectra.
See Comparative planetary science and Spectroscopy
Super-Jupiter
A super-Jupiter is a gas giant exoplanet that is more massive than the planet Jupiter.
See Comparative planetary science and Super-Jupiter
Tektite
Tektites are gravel-sized bodies composed of black, green, brown or grey natural glass formed from terrestrial debris ejected during meteorite impacts.
See Comparative planetary science and Tektite
Terrestrial analogue site
Terrestrial analogue sites (also called "space analogues") are places on Earth with assumed past or present geological, environmental or biological conditions of a celestial body such as the Moon or Mars.
See Comparative planetary science and Terrestrial analogue site
Tidal locking
Tidal locking between a pair of co-orbiting astronomical bodies occurs when one of the objects reaches a state where there is no longer any net change in its rotation rate over the course of a complete orbit.
See Comparative planetary science and Tidal locking
Titan (moon)
Titan is the largest moon of Saturn and the second-largest in the Solar System.
See Comparative planetary science and Titan (moon)
Triton (moon)
Triton is the largest natural satellite of the planet Neptune.
See Comparative planetary science and Triton (moon)
Tropical cyclone
A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls.
See Comparative planetary science and Tropical cyclone
Volcanic lightning
Volcanic lightning is an electrical discharge caused by a volcanic eruption rather than from an ordinary thunderstorm.
See Comparative planetary science and Volcanic lightning
Voyager program
The Voyager program is an American scientific program that employs two interstellar probes, Voyager 1 and Voyager 2.
See Comparative planetary science and Voyager program
W. H. Freeman and Company
W.
See Comparative planetary science and W. H. Freeman and Company
Water vapor
Water vapor, water vapour or aqueous vapor is the gaseous phase of water.
See Comparative planetary science and Water vapor
References
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparative_planetary_science
Also known as Comparative planetology.
, Kuiper belt, Late Heavy Bombardment, Lava, Lava dome, Lava planet, Libration, Lightning, List of Mars analogs, Lunar Crater National Natural Landmark, Lunar mare, Lunar swirls, Mars, MARSIS, Martian meteorite, Miranda (moon), Moons of Neptune, Ocean world, Outline of space science, Pancake dome, Pedestal crater, Planetary core, Planetary differentiation, Planetary flyby, Planetary science, Planetary system, Pluto, Polar vortex, Radioactive decay, Radionuclide, Rhea (moon), Rings of Saturn, Seasonal flows on warm Martian slopes, Seismometer, Shatter cone, Shocked quartz, Silicate, Small Solar System body, Sodium tail of the Moon, Solar wind, Space weathering, Space.com, Spectroscopy, Super-Jupiter, Tektite, Terrestrial analogue site, Tidal locking, Titan (moon), Triton (moon), Tropical cyclone, Volcanic lightning, Voyager program, W. H. Freeman and Company, Water vapor.