Asteroid Holding Clues To The Solar System's Roots Summary

Gravity: Gravity is a force of nature that keeps things on Earth instead of floating out of the atmosphere.

The solar system was created 4.6 billion years ago by a gravitational collapse. A solar system is a star that has planets, moons, asteroids, comets, and meteoroids travel around it. The solar system contains eight known planets which are Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, and Neptune. There is around several hundred dwarf plants but only five are currently recognized. The solar system has about 181 moons which orbit around the planets in the solar system. There is also about 150 million asteroids and 3,406 comets also in the solar system.

The reading on terrestrial planets from chapter 6 provides readers with a little insight on the similarities and differences between the planets. These planets include Earth, Venus, Mercury, and Mars. Although these planets have very different properties, they are connected due to their history. There are scientific laws that help people understand, compare, and contrast these planets, such as gravity, chemical composition, and temperature.

The discovery of the Neptune planet was the result of various hypotheses, generated by different astronomers and mathematicians from 1781 to 1847. The article entitled “Accounting for Anomaly: The Discovery of Neptune” describes how Neptune was mathematically identified, before being directly observed, using the calculations of Urbain Le Verrier. He made the hypothesis that the Newtonian gravitation law could not fully explain the series of irregularities in the path of the Uranus planet. Le Verrier suggested the existence of another planet, after Uranus, that could affect its gravity. In 1845 his hypothesis followed a series of calculations to determine the nature and position of this unknown planet. By this calculations Le Verrier’s understood

In inspiring people to have the passion in understanding the universal laws that govern us all, Professor Stephen Hawking reminds us on his speech for his 70th birthday to “remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet” (enoch, 2012). Many scientists have been “looking up” and have discovered answers to the many questions that we have of the universe for ages. They have constructed theories, launched satellites, observed stellar phenomena, and even sent living beings in space to gain more understanding of the existence of everything. After centuries of research and observation, there are still some aspects of Astronomy that are still to be explored. One of them is the evolution of the Solar System, which is composed of the Sun and everything that travels around it. This includes eight planets and their natural satellites such as the Earth’s moon; dwarf planets such as Pluto and Ceres; asteroids; comets and meteoroids (Solar System Exploration, 2014). The Solar System is located in the Milky Way Galaxy, which is a part of a galactic group under the Virgo Supercluster. Figure 1 shows the location of our Solar System in the Universe. Many theories have been proposed on how the Solar System existed, but none has been completely successful. This spans from the time of the Ancient Greeks to the present 21st Century. As of now, the widely accepted theory is the Nebular Theory, which describes how the Solar System started as a large cloud of gas that contracted under

Most of us are familiar with the panspermia hypothesis – that life can be “seeded” from asteroid, comet, and planetoid contents – but to date, no direct evidence has been discovered. So, why should we consider meteorites to be possible parents? The truth is out there somewhere and these space rocks contain the essentials, as far down as to amino acids. Until now, what has been recovered has been regarded as structured. However, the matter of Tagish Lake arose.

The Kepler Mission also supports the objectives of future NASA Origins theme missions Space Interferometry Mission and Terrestrial Planet Finder, by identifying the common stellar characteristics of host stars for future planet searches, defining the volume of space needed for the search, and allowing the Space Interferometry Mission to target systems already known to have terrestrial planets.

As a member that is part of the UC’s Lick Observatory “Planet Hunter Team, I have found a possible planetary system that may contain a planet. From my further research, I discovered that the planet may support life, such as bacteria and plants. After confirming with the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Institute about intelligent life, I eventually decided to want to discuss intelligent life through a scientific process. I will use the Drake Equation to give us the possibility that intelligent life can emit signals to reveal any existence. The equation is given as N= R* x fp x ne x fl x fi x fc x L. The calculations of each variables will help me understand what is being contributed into calculating the chance of any signals being detected and the calculated result will determined the conclusion of intelligent life existing. Nevertheless, this is just an estimation for the possibility of any life as the Drake Equation may or may not be as reliable as we may expect it to be.

The debate concerning Pluto’s planetary status had been going on for decades before the International Astronomical Union’s almost unanimous verdict in 2006 to designate it a dwarf planet. Many distinct people had many dissimilar suggestions, but the argument was mostly torn between those wishing for Pluto to retain planetary status and those proposing another classification. Neil DeGrasse Tyson wrote The Pluto Files: The Rise and Fall of America’s Favorite Planet to examine why Pluto ought not to be considered a planetary body and instead a dwarf planet or Kuiper Belt Object (KBO).

They are currently looking at an icy mass known as 1994 JR1. This icy rock orbits 32 astronomical units away from the sun. NASA believes that 1994 JR1 is a Pluto satellite. And it just so happens to look like a UFO. This icy rock is significant, since it will give NASA scientists a better view of the other 20 objects it has its sights set on. One of those future space rock probes passed Pluto is MU69. This may also better serve as atmospheric insight into Pluto. Is Pluto even a planet? It was downgraded a few years ago due to its size. So what is NASA really looking for?

hit Earth are found to be great discoveries. These small space rocks that have been chipped off

“Philae may even get to observe gases or other matter emerging from underground as the comet heats to scorching temperatures” (Yeager 10). If comets are part of the solar system from long ago, the gases coming from the comets, are the history of what Earth would have or could be potentially made up of. Also, “By studying these hunks of rock, dust and ice, scientists hope to better understand the early history of the solar system...never has the chance of doing this been better than on the comet under Philae’s robotic feet” (Yeager 8). In the commit, the different materials all can go to prove and explain different parts of our Solar System's history. In conclusion the new history we may not know is something we gain off of the exploratory Philae

Asteroids are bodies of rocks that range in sizes from dust particles to large chunks of rocks or perhaps minor planets that orbit around the inner solar system. Yes, the big chunk of rocks can actually be classified as minor planets, which are also known as planetoids. These leftover pieces of rock were derived from the formation of our solar system. Most of these asteroids are found in the asteroid belt---a ring-shaped orbit between Mars and Jupiter. Asteroids don't just float around in space but are known to move at very high speed. And this speed, despite the size of an asteroid, is the reason why an impact with another planet could be catastrophic. Just ask the dinosaurs. And this disastrous consequences of an asteroid, impacting the

Comets have two significant sources: The Oort Cloud, and the Kuiper Belt. The Oort Cloud is a cloud of icy objects that rests from 10,000 AU to 100,000 AU. Massive amounts of these icy objects remain in the cloud, cold and hidden from Earth. While these icy objects are still in the Oort Cloud, they are not yet comets - they lack tails and comae. Occasionally, the gravity of a star passing by may disrupt some of the bodies within the Oort Cloud, and the bodies will be pulled into the solar system where the sun heats them and they become comets. The second source of comets is the Kuiper Belt. The Kuiper Belt is a belt of icy planetesimals located beyond Neptune and the Jovian planets. It extends to about 50 AU from the sun. The Kuiper Belt orbits

The Asteroid belt is a disc shaped belt located in between Mars and Jupiter. The Asteroid Belt is mostly empty with scattered asteroids all around. The 4 most giant asteroids in the belt are Ceres, Vesta, Pallas, and Hygiea. These 4 asteroids are over half the mass of the whole belt! The asteroid belt is between 2.2 and 3.2 AU away from the sun.