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Planetary Science

Unit Code: HET620

Duration

Contact Hours

Campus

Prerequisite

Corequisite

1 semester

Equivalent to 60 Hours

Online

HET602 Exploring the Solar System or equivalent

Nil

Credit Points: 12.5 Credit Points

> Related Course/s
> Teaching Methods
> Assessment
> Aims & Objectives
> Content
> Textbooks
> Recommended Reading

Related Course/s:

A unit of study in the Graduate Certificate of Science (Astronomy), Graduate Diploma of Science (Astronomy) and Master of Science (Astronomy)


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Aims & Objectives:

Aims
This unit will provide students with a detailed understanding of the interdisciplinary nature of planetary science - combining astronomy, geology, chemistry, and atmospheric science. It will investigate the origins and evolution of our Solar System, the terrestrial and giant planets, planetary atmospheres and surface phenomena.

Objectives
After successfully completing this Unit, students should be able to:
  • appreciate that planetary science is an inter-disciplinary field involving astronomy, physics, chemistry and geology;
  • understand planetary orbits and the nature of gravity in shaping our Solar System;
  • understand planetary atmospheres, surfaces and interiors and specifically what they can teach us about planet formation;
  • research an astronomy topic in depth, using dependable sources of astronomical information on the internet and refereed journal articles.


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Teaching Methods:

Online delivery mode, contact via newsgroups & email

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Assessment:

Assessable newsgroup contributions, essay, online tests and project 


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Content:

  • An introduction to the interdisciplinary field of planetary science
  • Orbital dynamics: 2, 3 and N-body problems; perturbations and resonances; tides; dissipative forces
  • Solar heating and radiative equilibrium
  • Planetary atmospheres: thermal structure, composition, meteorology, photochemistry, escape
  • Planetary surfaces: morphology, mineralogy, cratering
  • Planetary interiors: modelling internal structure, terrestrials and giants
  • Magnetospheres: dipole magnetic fields, plasma, planetary magnetospheres
  • Debris: meteorites, asteroids, comets and planetary rings
  • Planet formation and the origin of the Solar System

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Textbooks:

Planetary Sciences, Imke de Pater and Jack J. Lissauer, 2nd edition, 2010 (Cambridge University Press), ISBN-13: 9780521853712, ISBN-10: 0521853710

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Recommended Reading:

Solar System Evolution: A New Perspective. Taylor, S.R. (2nd edition) 2001.
(Cambridge University Press) ISBN -10: 0521675669 (pb), ISBN-13: 9780521675666

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