Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
-
Thinking Ahead
“Our imaginations always fall short of anticipating the beauty we find in nature.”—Geologist Laurence Soderblom, discussing the 1989 Voyager encounter with Neptune’s moons All four giant planets are accompanied by moons that orbit about them like planets in a miniature solar system. Nearly 200 moons are known in the outer solar system—too many to name…
-
Collaborative Group Activities
Collaborative Group Activities Review Questions 1: What are the main challenges involved in sending probes to the giant planets? 2: Why is it difficult to drop a probe like Galileo? How did engineers solve this problem? 3: Explain why visual observation of the gas giants is not sufficient to determine their rotation periods, and what evidence was used…
-
For Further Exploration
For Further Exploration Articles Jupiter Aguirre, Edwin. “Hubble Zooms in on Jupiter’s New Red Spot.” Sky & Telescope (August 2006): 26. Beatty, J. “Into the Giant.” Sky & Telescope (April 1996): 20. On the Galileo probe. Beebe, R. “Queen of the Giant Storms.” Sky & Telescope (October 1990): 359. Excellent review of the Red Spot. Johnson, T. “The Galileo Mission to…
-
Atmospheres of the Giant Planets Learning Objectives By the end of this section, you will be able to: The atmospheres of the jovian planets are the parts we can observe or measure directly. Since these planets have no solid surfaces, their atmospheres are more representative of their general compositions than is the case with the terrestrial…
-
The Giant Planets
Learning Objectives By the end of this section, you will be able to: Let us now examine the four giant (or jovian) planets in more detail. Our approach is not just to catalog their characteristics, but to compare them with each other, noting their similarities and differences and attempting to relate their properties to their differing…
-
Exploring the Outer Planets
Learning Objectives By the end of this section, you will be able to: The giant planets hold most of the mass in our planetary system. Jupiter alone exceeds the mass of all the other planets combined (Figure 11.2). The material available to build these planets can be divided into three classes by what they are made of:…
-
Thinking Ahead
“What do we learn about the Earth by studying the planets? Humility.”—Andrew Ingersoll discussing the results of the Voyager mission in 1986. Beyond Mars and the asteroid belt, we encounter a new region of the solar system: the realm of the giants. Temperatures here are lower, permitting water and other volatiles to condense as ice.…
-
Collaborative Group Activities
Collaborative Group Activities
-
For Further Exploration
For Further Exploration Articles Venus Dorminey, B. “Cool Science on a Hot World.” Astronomy (February 2006): 46. Five-page overview of Venus and the Venus Express mission plans. Kargel, J. “Rivers of Venus.” Sky & Telescope (August 1997): 32. On lava channels. Robertson, D. “Parched Planet.” Sky & Telescope (April 2008): 26. Overview of our understanding of the planet. Robinson, C. “Magellan…
-
Divergent Planetary Evolution
Learning Objectives By the end of this section, you will be able to: Venus, Mars, and our own planet Earth form a remarkably diverse triad of worlds. Although all three orbit in roughly the same inner zone around the Sun and all apparently started with about the same chemical mix of silicates and metals, their evolutionary paths have…
Got any book recommendations?