Terrestrial planets physical properties

Weidner D. J. (1986) Mantle model based on measured physical properties of minerals. In Chemistry and Physics of Terrestrial Planets (ed. S. K. Saxena). Springer, New York, pp. 251-274. 

Table 1 compares physical parameters of the planetary atmospheres discussed below. We separate these into two groups (1) the terrestrial planets (Venus, Earth, and Mars), and (2) the gas giant planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune). Properties for the terrestrial planets are given at the observed surface conditions. Properties for the gas giant planets, which do not have observable solid surfaces, are given at the 1 bar atmospheric level. 

Catti, M. (1986) Theoretical computation of physical properties of mantle minerals, in S.K. Saxena (ed.). Chemistry and Physics of Terrestrial Planets, Advances in Physical Geochemistry, Vol. 6, Springer Verlag, Berlin, pp. 224-250. 

In Chapter 6 we consider instrumental effects, such as spectral resolution and signal-to-noise ratio, and discuss data from the terrestrial and the giant planets in a qualitative manner. In Chapter 7 we examine methods for interpreting spectroscopic and radiometric data produced by real instruments in terms of physical properties of atmospheres and surfaces. Emphasis is placed on the retrieval of thermal stmcture, gas composition and cloud properties of the atmospheres, and thermal properties and texture of surfaces. Limitations on the information content inherent in measured quantities are assessed. 

There were times on our planet when the barren dryness of uninhabited continents sharply contrasted with the densely populated sea. The continental lithosphere was then essentially represented by rock surfaces of different types. Sedimentary rocks were rare, if not absent. As rock materials became exposed to the subaerial environment at the Earth s surface, they encountered a whole range of environmental challenges such as temperature fluctuations, water, unbuffered cosmic and solar irradiation and atmospheric gases and solids instead of dissolved species. These influences resulted in rocks undergoing alterations in material properties leading to erosion and breakdown into ever-smaller particles and constituent minerals, formation of sandy sediments, and mineral soils (Ehrlich, 1996). Primordial terrestrial environments can therefore be visualized as a freshly exposed and only slightly physically pre-weathered rock surface. 

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