Planetology
PLANETOLOGY
Planetology is the branch of astronomy that deals with the physical features of the planets. Planetology studies include the origin and composition of the planets, and the solid bodies of comets and meteors found in the solar system.
Comet, Asteroid, and Meteor
An asteroid and a comet are very similar, and yet at times they are unique and easily distinguishable from each other. An asteroid and a comet are both a small solar body system, rotating around the sun. An asteroid consists of rock and metal, and may have some organic compound. Although it is quite like the comet, an asteroid does not have the visible coma of a fuzzy outline that a comet does. A comet is ...
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as a boulder which is called an asteroid (Cain, 2009).
A meteoroid becomes a meteor when it strikes the atmosphere and leaves a bright tail line trailing it. , caused by the ram pressure of the meteoroid, not friction, like many believe. When a meteoroid is larger, the streak in the sky is called a fireball, one that is so bright it can leave a streak in the sky lasting several minutes. A meteoroid that is able to survive its passage through the atmosphere, is referred to by astronomers as a meteorite (Cain, 2009).
Asteroid Belt
The asteroid belt is the region of the Solar System located roughly between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. It is occupied by numerous irregularly shaped bodies called asteroids or minor planets. The asteroid belt is designated as the main asteroid belt to distinguish its adherents from other asteroids in the Solar System (LICENSE, 2013).
About half the mass of the belt is contained in the four largest asteroids, Ceres, Vesta, Pallas, and ...
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object to take up an orbit that crosses into the inner solar system. The Kuiper Belt extends from about 30 to 55 AU and is populated with hundreds of thousands of icy bodies, larger than 62 miles across, and an estimated trillion or more comets (NASA, 2013).
Oort Comet Cloud
The Oort Comet Cloud is a huge spherical shell of comet surrounding the solar system. This cloud occupies a distance of space close to 93 million miles, and its outer extent is believed to extend so far out that the nearby stars have a greater influence than the sun's gravitational pull. It is estimated that the Oort cloud contains 0.1 to 2 trillion icy bodies in its solar orbit. There are times when a solar ...
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Planetology. (2014, May 6). Retrieved December 23, 2024, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Planetology/104059
"Planetology." Essayworld.com. Essayworld.com, 6 May. 2014. Web. 23 Dec. 2024. <http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Planetology/104059>
"Planetology." Essayworld.com. May 6, 2014. Accessed December 23, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Planetology/104059.
"Planetology." Essayworld.com. May 6, 2014. Accessed December 23, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Planetology/104059.
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