Planetary Geology

Catalog description

This introductory level course will examine the evolution of our Solar System and the geology of planetary bodies, including Mercury, Venus, the Moon, Mars, asteroids, and the moons of Jupiter and Saturn. We will discuss the origin of the Solar System from a geological perspective and explore how scientists combine observations from extraterrestrial samples such as meteorites with data returned by satellites and rovers to develop and test hypotheses related to planetary evolution. Emphasis will be on comparing geologic processes on these bodies to well-understood processes on Earth, results from past, current, and upcoming planetary missions, and the future of human and robotic exploration of space.