Midterm #2 Review

Our Solar System

• scale of the solar system
• basic properties of planets
• patterns in the solar system (orbital, compositional)

Formation of the Solar System

• nebular theory: collapse of a gas cloud into a heated, spinning disk w/ star at the center
• condensation: how it depends on temperature and distance from the Sun
• accretion and planet building
• capture of gases by massive cores to form the gas giants
• asteroids and comets
• moons: formation vs capture
  
• how does it explain various properties of the solar system?

Planetary Geology

• structure of planetary interiors
• how planetary interiors heat and cool; how it depends on size
• magnetic fields
  
• shaping surfaces: cratering, volcanic activity, tectonics, erosion
• history of the Moon, Mercury
• Mars: surface features, evidence for ancient (current?) water
• Venus: volcanic activity
• Earth: plate tectonics, continental drift
• Planetary Geology: destined at birth?
  

Planetary Atmospheres

• atmospheric pressure
  
• the greenhouse effect
• planetary temperatures: what determines them
  
• basic properties of planets' atmospheres
  
• how light interacts w/ atmosphere (why is the sky blue?)
  
• structure: troposphere, stratosphere, thermosphere, exosphere
  
• aurorae and the magnetosphere
• what influences climate
• creation and destruction processes of atmospheres
  
• Mars' climate and climate change
• Venus' runaway greenhouse
  
• The Earth's carbon dioxide cycle
  
• Global climate change on Earth
  

Night Sky Interludes

• know your bright stars and prominent constellations