6. The Inner Planets

Topics:

Internal structure
Heat outflow
Magnetic fields
Volcanic features
Tectonic features
Temperature balance
Escape velocity
Keeping an atmosphere

Reading:


Ch. 4	Earth and Moon (p. 76)
Ch. 4	EARTH: A DYNAMIC, VITAL WORLD (p. 77)
Ch. 4-1	The Earth's atmosphere has evolved over billions of years
Ch. 4-2	Plate tectonics produce major changes in the Earth's surface
Ch. 4-3	Earth's interior consists of a rocky mantle and an iron-rich core
Ch. 4-4	The Earth's magnetic field shields us from the solar wind
Ch. 4	THE MOON AND TIDES (p. 85)
Ch. 4-5	The Moon's surface is covered with craters, plains, and mountains
Ch. 4-6	Visits to the Moon yielded invaluable information about its history
Ch. 4-7	The Moon probably formed from debris cast into space when a huge planetesimal struck the young Earth
Ch. 5	The Other Planets and Moons (p. 93)
Ch. 5	MERCURY (p. 94)
Ch. 5-1	Photographs from Mariner 10 reveal Mercury's lunarlike surface
Ch. 5-3	Mercury has an iron core and a magnetic field like Earth
Ch. 5	VENUS (p. 97)
Ch. 5-5	The greenhouse effect heats Venus's surface
Ch. 5-6	Venus is covered with gently rolling hills, two ``continents'', and numerous volcanos
Ch. 5	MARS (p. 101)
Ch. 5-9	Probes to Mars found craters, volcanoes, and canyons
Ch. 5-10	Surface features indicate that water once flowed on Mars
Ch. 5-11	Martin air is thin and often filled with dust

Web Resources:

Planets with atmospheres: Mars [source], Earth [source], Venus [source]
Portraits of the terrestrial planets with atmospheres. Compare the thin wisp of atmosphere on Mars with the swirling weather patterns of the Earth and the thick clouds of Venus.
Topographic map animations
- Venus (0.6 Mbyte mpeg) [source]
- Earth (0.8 Mbyte mpeg) [source]
- Mars (0.4 Mbyte mpeg) [source]
Color indicates elevation in these animations. For Venus and Mars, black and purple represent the lowest regions, while red and white represent the highest areas. For the Earth, deep blue represents the lowest ocean floors, while red represents the highest mountains.
Rotating Mars (0.75 Mbyte mpeg) [source]
Space Telescope images of Mars showing rotation.
Earth's Interior & Plate Tectonics
A summary of the internal structure of our planet.
Plate boundaries [source]
Map of the Earth showing boundaries of crustal plates.
Convective motion (1.1 Mbyte mpeg) [source]
Animation of convective motion in a slab. Also see this guide to convection.
Mantle Convection [source]
Visualization of convection in the mantle of Mars.
Impact craters
- Cratered terrain on Mercury [source]
- Caloris basin on Mercury [source]
- Golubkina crater on Venus [source]
- Farside craters on Moon [source]
- Manicouagan crater on Earth [source]
- Arizona meteor crater on Earth [source]
- Ancient craters on Mars [source]
Volcanic features
- Volcanic mountains & rift vally on Venus [source]
- Volcanic rocks on Venus [source]
- Mauna Loa on Earth [source]
- Mount Rainier on Earth [source]
- Olympus Mons on Mars [source]
- Crater of Olympus Mons on Mars [source]
Tectonic structures
- Compression fault on Mercury [source]
- Andes mountains on Earth [source]
- Tibet plateau on Earth [source]
- Valles Marineris on Mars [source]
- Magnetic fields on Mars [source]
Erosion
- Grand Canyon on Earth [source]
- Drainage network on Earth [source]
- Outflow network on Mars [source]
- Candor Chasm on Mars [source]
- Sand dunes on Mars [source]
- Water erosion on Mars (left) and Earth (right) [source]

Homework 6: Planetary Surfaces, due 10/09.

Quiz 6: Mass Matters, given 10/04.

Joshua E. Barnes (barnes@ifa.hawaii.edu)

Last modified: October 11, 2001
http://www.ifa.hawaii.edu/~barnes/ast110/tip.html