Origin and Early Evolution of Comet Nuclei
Origin and Early Evolution of Comet Nuclei

Author: Hans Balsiger

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2008-09-27

Total Pages: 312

ISBN-13: 038785455X

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Comet nuclei are the most primitive bodies in the solar system. They have been created far away from the early Sun and it is supposed that their material has been altered the least since their formation. This volume presents the results of a scientific workshop on comet nuclei and is written by experts working on interstellar clouds, star-forming regions, the solar nebula, and comets. The articles formulate the current understanding and interconnectivity of the various source regions of comet nuclei and their associated compositions and orbital characteristics. This includes a discussion on the transport of materials into the Kuiper belt and Oort cloud regions of the solar system. The distinction between direct measurements of cometary material properties and properties derived from indirect means are emphasized with the aim to guide future investigations. This book serves as a guide for researchers and graduate students working in the field of planetology and solar system exploration. It should also help to influence the planning of scientific strategies for the encounter of the Rosetta spacecraft with Comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko.

Origin And Evolution Of Comets: Ten Years After The Nice Model And One Year After Rosetta
Origin And Evolution Of Comets: Ten Years After The Nice Model And One Year After Rosetta

Author: Hans Rickman

Publisher: World Scientific

Published: 2017-10-05

Total Pages: 374

ISBN-13: 981322259X

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Since several decades, comets have been considered as key witnesses of solar system formation. Their nature has been explored using the modern arsenal of Earth- and space-based observations, and they hold a central place as dynamical arbiters of the planetary system in the new paradigm of solar system evolution known as the Nice Model. Thus, they have the potential to test the various ideas, using the detailed data recently gathered by the ESA/Rosetta mission. This requires an understanding of their origin and evolution, which form the subject of the present book. All the relevant issues are covered, describing both the background and the current frontiers of research.

Formation Of The Solar System, The: Theories Old And New (2nd Edition)
Formation Of The Solar System, The: Theories Old And New (2nd Edition)

Author: Michael Mark Woolfson

Publisher: World Scientific

Published: 2014-09-11

Total Pages: 441

ISBN-13: 1783265248

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This fully-updated second edition remains the only truly detailed exploration of the origins of our Solar System, written by an authority in the field. Unlike other authors, Michael Woolfson focuses on the formation of the solar system, engaging the reader in an intelligent yet accessible discussion of the development of ideas about how the Solar System formed from ancient times to the present.Within the last five decades new observations and new theoretical advances have transformed the way scientists think about the problem of finding a plausible theory. Spacecraft and landers have explored the planets of the Solar System, observations have been made of Solar-System bodies outside the region of the planets and planets have been detected and observed around many solar-type stars. This new edition brings in the most recent discoveries, including the establishment of dwarf planets and challenges to the ‘standard model’ of planet formation — the Solar Nebula Theory.While presenting the most up-to-date material and the underlying science of the theories described, the book avoids technical jargon and terminology. It thus remains a digestible read for the non-expert interested reader, whilst being detailed and comprehensive enough to be used as an undergraduate physics and astronomy textbook, where the formation of the solar system is a key part of the course.Michael Woolfson is Emeritus Professor of Theoretical Physics at University of York and is an award-winning crystallographer and astronomer.

Exploration of Halley’s Comet
Exploration of Halley’s Comet

Author: Michael Grewing

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2012-12-06

Total Pages: 1005

ISBN-13: 3642829716

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The 1985/86 apparition of Halley's Comet turned out to be the most important apparition of a comet ever. It provided a worldwide science community with a wealth of exciting new discoveries, the most remarkable of which was undoubtedly the first image of a cometary nucleus. Halley's Comet is the brightest periodic comet, and the most famous of the 750 known comets. With its 76-year period, its recent appearance was truly a "once-in-a-lifetime" observational opportunity. The 1985/86 apparition was the thirtieth consecutive recorded apparition. Five apparitions ago, the English astronomer Edmond Halley discovered the periodicity of "his" comet and correctly predicted its return in 1758, a triumph for science best appreciated in the context of contemporary views, or rather fears, about comets at that time. The increasingly rapid progress in technological development is very much apparent when one compares the dominant tools for cometary research during Halley's next three apparitions: in 1835 studies were made based on drawings ofthe comet; in 1910 photographic plates were used; while in March 1986 an armada of six spacecraft from four space agencies approached the comet and carried out in situ measurements, 1 AU from the Earth. In 1910, nobody could have dreamed that this was possible, and today it is equally difficult to anticipate what scientists will be able to achieve in 2061.

Comets And The Origin Of Life
Comets And The Origin Of Life

Author: Nalin Chandra Wickramasinghe

Publisher: World Scientific

Published: 2009-08-31

Total Pages: 232

ISBN-13: 9814478741

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The idea that comets may be connected with the origin of life on Earth was considered heresy a few decades ago, with scientists shying away from this possibility as if from a medieval superstition. However the case that comets may have contributed at least the complex organic building blocks of life has become very strong, and mechanisms have now been identified whereby comets may incubate and transfer microbial life from one cosmic habitat to another in the Galaxy. The latter process cometary panspermia was pioneered by the late Sir Fred Hoyle and one of the present authors in the early 1980's. A theory that was once controversial is slowly gaining scientific respectability and support.The recent surge of interest in astrobiology has led to a spate of books in astrobiology — combining astronomy and biology — but in most of these, cometary panspermia is dealt with only cursorily. The present book sets out the case for cometary panspermia in a cogent way, combining evidence from space science, celestial mechanics, geology and microbiology. It should be an essential part of any university course on astrobiology, and also serve as a reference textbook for researchers in the field.

The Search for Life's Origins
The Search for Life's Origins

Author: National Research Council

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 1990-02-01

Total Pages: 161

ISBN-13: 0309042461

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The field of planetary biology and chemical evolution draws together experts in astronomy, paleobiology, biochemistry, and space science who work together to understand the evolution of living systems. This field has made exciting discoveries that shed light on how organic compounds came together to form self-replicating molecules-the origin of life. This volume updates that progress and offers recommendations on research programs-including an ambitious effort centered on Mars-to advance the field over the next 10 to 15 years. The book presents a wide range of data and research results on these and other issues: The biogenic elements and their interaction in the interstellar clouds and in solar nebulae. Early planetary environments and the conditions that lead to the origin of life. The evolution of cellular and multicellular life. The search for life outside the solar system. This volume will become required reading for anyone involved in the search for life's beginnings-including exobiologists, geoscientists, planetary scientists, and U.S. space and science policymakers.

Comets
Comets

Author: Laurel L. Wilkening

Publisher: University of Arizona Press

Published: 1982-04

Total Pages: 784

ISBN-13: 9780816507696

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Over forty authorities present sections on the nucleus, dust, coma, and tails of comets, along with sections on their origin, and relationships to other solar system bodies. . . . An excellent book.ÑSpace News "The volume is highly recommended to all interested in comets and the Solar System."ÑJournal of the British Astronomical Association "A good representation of the studies that are currently being done on comets, and it is an extremely good source of information on a wide variety of topics."ÑInternational Comet Quarterly "Extremely well-written and informative. . . . A must for library collections."ÑThe Observatory

Frontiers in Surface Science and Interface Science
Frontiers in Surface Science and Interface Science

Author: C.B. Duke

Publisher: Gulf Professional Publishing

Published: 2002-05-21

Total Pages: 1076

ISBN-13: 9780444510419

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Any notion that surface science is all about semiconductors and coatings is laid to rest by this encyclopedic publication: Bioengineered interfaces in medicine, interstellar dust, DNA computation, conducting polymers, the surfaces of atomic nuclei - all are brought up to date. Frontiers in Surface and Interface Science - a milestone publication deserving a wide readership. It combines a sweeping expert survey of research today with an educated look into the future. It is a future that embraces surface phenomena on scales from the subatomic to the galactic, as well as traditional topics like semiconductor design, catalysis, and surface processing, modeling and characterization. And, great efforts have been made to express sophisticated ideas in an attractive and accessible way. Nanotechnology, surfaces for DNA computation, polymer-based electronics, soft surfaces, interstellar surface chemistry - all feature in this comprehensive collection.

1978 NASA authorization
1978 NASA authorization

Author: United States. Congress. House. Committee on Science and Technology. Subcommittee on Space Science and Applications

Publisher:

Published: 1977

Total Pages: 1228

ISBN-13:

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