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EAS 206: Geology of the Solar System > Untested Materials (Lecture 7, 17-23) > Flashcards

Untested Materials (Lecture 7, 17-23) Flashcards

1
Q

The six successful Apollo missions

A

Apollo 11, 12, 14-17

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2
Q

Apollo 11 geological goal and results

A

Goal: Sample relatively old mare surface
Results: ~3.7 Ga basalts high in Fe, Ti; Water not important; Maria is very old; Maria is volcanic

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3
Q

Apollo 12 geological goal and results

A

Goal: Sample relatively young mare; possible ray from Copernicus
Results: ~3.15 to 3.35 Ga; “young” maria are very old; Copernicus may have formed approximately 0.9 Ga ago; Granite exists on the Moon

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4
Q

Apollo 14 geological goal and results

A

Goal: Sample Imbrium ejecta, possibly deep material
Results: a variety of breccia, ~3.9 to 4.9 Ga; no deep material; Region is ejecta blanket of Imbrium basin; Imbrium basin formed approximately 3.9 to 4.0 Ga ago; Trace-element-enriched rocks very abundant

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5
Q

Apollo 15 geological goal and results

A

Goal: Sample mountainous rings of Imbrium basin, Hadley Rille
Results: ~3.2 Ga mare basalts, ~3.9-4.1 Ga breccias; Imbrium mare is not produced by impact; Rille related to collapsed lava tubes; highlands complex in composition

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6
Q

Apollo 16 geological goal and results

A

Goal: Sample breccias ~3.8-4.2 Ga
Results: impact breccias ~3.8-4.2 Ga; Most flat highland areas formed by pooled impact ejecta, probably related to major multi-ringed basins; highlands are anorthositic

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7
Q

Apollo 17 geological goal and results

A

Goal: sample massifs from older basins, flat valley plains between mountains and dark mantling
Results: a variety of breccias ~4.0 Ga, basalts ~3.7 Ga, volcanic glass ~3.5 Ga; Very young volcanism not evident; a variety of breccias may represent older events

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8
Q

Significance of the Soviet Luna Missions

A

Sampled the far side of the moon and was unmanned.

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9
Q

Advantages and disadvantages of human space exploration

A

Advantages: Rovers can only do so much. Humans have unique, on-the-fly decision-making abilities
Disadvantages: Human exploration is very difficult. For each 3-man mission, there were hundreds, if not thousands of people on Earth). Also the risk of human death

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10
Q

New Horizon Mission objectives

A
  • Map the surface composition of Pluto and Charon
  • Characterize the geology and morphology of Pluto and Charon
  • Characterize the neutral atmosphere of Pluto and its escape rate
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11
Q

IAU definition of a planet

A

A celestial body that is in orbit around the Sun, has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that it assumes a hydrostatic equilibrium shape, has cleared the neighborhood, around its orbit

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12
Q

IAU definition of a dwarf planet

A

A celestial body that is in orbit around the Sun has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that it assumes a hydrostatic equilibrium shape, has not cleared the neighborhood around its orbit, and is not a satellite

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13
Q

Alternative planet definition

A

any body in the solar system that is more massive than the total mass of all of the other bodies in a similar orbit

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14
Q

Geophysical definition of a planet

A

a sub-stellar mass body that has never undergone nuclear fusion and that has sufficient self-gravitation to assume a spheroidal shape, regardless of its orbital parameters

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15
Q

Exoplanet

A

A planet outside of the Solar System

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16
Q

Why is it difficult to find exoplanets?

A
  • Planets don’t produce their own light
  • They are very far away
  • They are lost in the blinding glare of their star
17
Q

How to find exoplanets?

A
  • Radial velocity (swaying of the star due to planets)
  • Astrometric measurement
  • Transit (planet crosses in front of the star)
  • Direct imaging
  • Gravitational lensing
18
Q

Three missions that have contributed to finding exoplanets

A

The MOST mission (Canada), the Kepler mission, and the Tess mission (USA)

19
Q

Star’s habitable zone

A

Comparing the surface temperature of a star with energy received by planets around it. The habitable zone is the distance from the star that water could exist on a planet and water is vital for life

20
Q

Planetary matter

A
  • Chemical composition (refractory vs. volatile)

- Size/mas (how much accreted)

21
Q

Planetary energy

A
  • Amount (how much originally, and since)

- Type (accretion, radioactivity, core formation (differentiation), tidal, solar, impact)

22
Q

How is Earth just right for life?

A
  • Plate tectonics (recycles crust, regulates carbon cycle)
  • silicates + eater (the right starting materials
  • Differentiation (atmosphere, from degassing)
  • Gravity to hold gases (and hold atmosphere)
  • Distance from the Sun (hydrologic cycle, habitable zone)
23
Q

Where else would you look for life in the Solar System?

A
  • Europa (subsurface ocean/tidal heating/organics)
  • Titan (subsurface ocean/tidal heating/organics)
  • Mars past (water/habitable zone/organics?)
  • Venus past (water/habitable zone/organics?)
  • Io? (tidal heating, but lacks water)
  • Enceladus (subsurface ocean/tidal heating/organics)
  • Ganymede (subsurface ocean/tidal heating/organics)
24
Q

Why are sample returns so important?

A
  • Rover instruments are limited in the amount of information they can provide
  • Analyses on Earth are much more advanced
  • We get to pick where the samples are collected
25
Q

Impactite

A

Broad term for rocks affected by a hypervelocity impact event from within the crater to beyond the ejecta blanket

26
Q

Macroscopic evidence of terrestrial impacts

A

crater morphology, shatter cones

27
Q

Microscopic evidence of terrestrial impacts

A

planetary deformation features (PDFs), planar fractures (PFs), diaplectic glass in quartz or feldspars, high-pressure polymorphs (quartz, olivine, graphite)

28
Q

Reasons why impact craters are not as distinct or easy to identify on Earth compared to other solid surfaces in the Solar System

A
  • Atmosphere (smaller meteoroids breakup/do not reach the ground)
  • Oceans (cover ~70% of the surface -> no craters)
  • Plate tectonics (old rocks are limited
  • Burial (sediment infill and cover craters over time)

EAS 206: Geology of the Solar System (6 decks)

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