Category Archives: Terrestrials

includes Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars

Geology of Mars

Posted on March 5, 2024 by Jack Abrams

Mars has a fascinating geology that is very comparable to Earth in many ways and also shows its very dynamic history. A well known geological feature on Mars is Olympus Mons, the largest volcano in the solar system, which stands at a height of approximately 16 miles and spans 374 miles in diameter. To compare, […] Continue reading →

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Geology of the Moon and Mercury – Blog 4

Posted on March 2, 2024 by Cameron Klein

After writing my last blog post about atmospheres and the greenhouse effect, when learning that the atmospheres of the Moon and Mercury cause them to be considered practically airless and have no weather, I became heavily intrigued. What makes the Moon and Mercury so different from the other planets in our solar system? Thus, I […] Continue reading →

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Atmospheres and the Greenhouse Effect – Cameron Klein

Posted on March 2, 2024 by Cameron Klein

When I used to think of planets, the planets’ atmospheres were typically the last things that would cross my mind. However, a planet’s atmosphere is a defining feature of it’s qualities. To start off, what even is an atmosphere? An atmosphere is a layer of gas that surrounds a planet (or planetary body) that is […] Continue reading →

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Blog 8 – The History of Venus

Posted on April 26, 2023 by Melanie Marszal

When asked to picture Venus, many of us picture a hot, volcanic, inhabitable place — and we would be correct. However, science suggests that it may not have always been this way. A study of five different climate simulations of Venus found that in each of these scenarios, the planet could have supported liquid water […] Continue reading →

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Blog #6: Detecting Extrasolar Planets

Posted on April 9, 2023 by Astro 2110

The photo above features the transit method of detecting extrasolar planets. Detecting extrasolar planets is a very delicate and challenging task for scientists. The distances between stars and relative sizes of stars compared to planets make it extremely hard to pick them out. Stars are also typically a billion times brighter than planets. There are […] Continue reading →

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The Loneliness of Rovers

Posted on April 9, 2023 by 88bw

Throughout this semester in ASTR2110, I have been reminded about how small we are compared to the universe. While this can be both a deflating and motivating perspective on our approach to astronomical study, I think it is undeniable that the rovers on Mars are unimaginably lonely during their stints on the red planet. I […] Continue reading →

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The Atmosphere as we know it

Posted on March 7, 2023 by cuia2

The atmosphere is split into four different layers: the troposphere, the stratosphere, the thermosphere, and the exosphere. The troposphere is the lowest layer and is where greenhouse gasses absorb the infrared light and where storms occur. The stratosphere absorbs solar ultraviolet light by ozone, Earth is the only planet to have this layer. The thermosphere […] Continue reading →

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A Climate in Crisis

Posted on March 7, 2023 by dougkyles422111

For this post, I’d like to increase my understanding of global warming because the book introduced to me the major process behind it. First off, I’d like to acknowledge that the climate crisis truly is one of the most difficult things we have globe have faced. We began on this Earth as a species tossed […] Continue reading →

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We Come in Peace! (If you can Find Us)

Posted on March 7, 2023 by dougkyles422111

It’s a common theme for me within this class to fixate on the possibility of life beyond Earth, and I’m glad to do that once again with today’s blog post. I want to respond to the book’s claim that life on Mars is an “extraordinary claim”. While it’s true the bold assertion like the one […] Continue reading →

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Blog #3 Formation of the Solar System

Posted on March 6, 2023 by reidwalker87

The formation of the Solar System is truly a testament to our good fortune of life being possible on a planet located in the “Goldilocks Zone” near the Sun. The initial conditions allowed for not only Earth to be composed of rocky elements such as carbon but for the Earth to be protected from flying […] Continue reading →

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