Planetary science

Planetary science

The scientific study of planets including Earth, moons, and planetary systems of the Solar System in particular and the processes that form them.

Industry: Astronomy

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Planetary science

gabbro

Astronomy; Planetary science

A course-grained igneous rock rich in the minerals olivine, pyroxene, and plagioclase feldspar.

convection

Astronomy; Planetary science

Movements of mantle material, laterally or in upward-downward directions, due to heat variations.

Galilean Moons

Astronomy; Planetary science

Jupiter's four largest moons: Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto, discovered independently by Galileo Galilei and Simon Marius in 1609-1610.

U. S. Mission to study Jupiter's atmosphere, moons, and magnetosphere. The Galileo spacecraft was carried into space and released in 1989 by the shuttle Atlantis. It used its own rocket booster to ...

Genesis Mission

Astronomy; Planetary science

U. S. Mission launched in August, 2001 to observe and collect solar wind samples and return them to Earth. Sample collections were obtained at the L1 point, approximately one million miles from Earth ...

Eratosthenian

Astronomy; Planetary science

The geologic history of Earth's Moon has been divided into five broad time periods, or systems. From oldest to youngest, these are pre-Nectarian, Nectarian, Imbrian, Eratosthenian, and Copernican. ...