The Sun and the Solar System Commons^™

Exploring Planetary Surfaces With Remote Sensing, Donald R. Hood

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Aside from Earth, Mars is the most well-explored planetary body in our solar system. Much has been learned about its geologic past including a history of volcanism, ice ages, and potentially long-lasting liquid water. Much of this knowledge of Mars comes from remote observations of the surface and atmosphere from Mars-orbiting satellites. Such remote observations remain the only way to examine the entirety of Mars’ surface as rovers and landers can only examine small areas. The chapters of this work cover three projects that explore the surface of Mars through a variety of remote sensing methods.

In chapter 1, Gamma-ray …

Descriptive Astronomy I: The Solar System (Csu), Rosa Williams, Kimberly Shaw

Physics and Astronomy Grants Collections

This Grants Collection for Descriptive Astronomy I was created under a Round Thirteen ALG Textbook Transformation Grant.

Affordable Learning Georgia Grants Collections are intended to provide faculty with the frameworks to quickly implement or revise the same materials as a Textbook Transformation Grants team, along with the aims and lessons learned from project teams during the implementation process.

Each collection contains the following materials:

• Linked Syllabus
• Initial Proposal
• Final Report

On Newtonian Dynamics With A Variable Earth Mass: Geodetic Evidence And Its Implications On Pioneer Spacecraft Anomaly And Lageos Satellite, Victor Christianto, Florentin Smarandache

Branch Mathematics and Statistics Faculty and Staff Publications

Around 3 decades ago, Jayant Narlikar & Halton Arp argued on possible variable mass hypothesis cosmology (VMH). In the meantime, the Earth expansion problem has attracted great interest, and recent study gives geodetic evidence that the Earth has been expanding, at least over the recent several decades. Therefore, in the present article discusses some interesting effects related to varying G, but here we argue that instead of varying G we can think of varying mass (M). Among other things we discuss receding planets from the Sun, calculation of Pioneer spacecraft anomaly as proposed by B.G. Sidharth, and also possible slight …

Adsorption Driven Regolith-Atmospheric Water Vapor Transfer On Mars: An Analysis Of Phoenix Tecp Data, Holly Nicole Farris

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

NASA’s Phoenix mission allowed for investigations of Martian diurnal water vapor cycles through the collection of temperature, relative humidity, and electric conductivity data by the Thermal and Electric Conductivity Probe (TECP) instrument. Using this data and previous experimental data, we propose a regolith-driven adsorption-desorption regime at the Phoenix landing site, where parameters intrinsic to the regolith are controlling localized relative humidity at the surface. To constrain these parameters, we model adsorption as a function of temperature and relative humidity across various Mars-relevant materials, defined by two layer-based adsorption theories: Langmuir (monolayer) and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller or BET (multilayer). Langmuir serves as an …

Decoding The History Of The Early Solar System Using Comet Volatile Compositions, Nathan Roth

Dissertations

Understanding the evolution of the solar system, as well as its current volatile content, requires knowledge of the initial conditions present in the solar nebula. As some of the first objects to accrete in the solar nebula, cometary nuclei are among the most primitive remnants of solar system formation, and their present-day volatile composition likely reflects the composition and conditions where (and when) they formed. As such, the volatile compositions of cometary nuclei may serve as "fossils" of solar system formation. High-resolution near-infrared spectroscopy offers a valuable tool for sampling the primary volatile (i.e., ices subliming directly from the nucleus) …

Understanding Solar Activity During The Last 400 Years, Sam Q. Hollenbach

Macalester Journal of Physics and Astronomy

The solar cycle has a profound effect on both terrestrial and extra-terrestrial operations. Understanding the history of the solar cycle is necessary for studying long term trends, however older data is difficult to calibrate due to the sparsity of observations. In this paper we propose a new method for calibrating sunspot number data that does not rely on observational overlap. Initial testing shows promise in this method’s success, though more work must be done to ensure calibration consistency across all observers.

Induced Magnetic Dipole On Jupiter’S Moon Europa, Luke Francis, Michele Zanolin

Student Works

Physics can have some of the most unique and extraordinary applications of basic principles applied on a larger scale. This paper will explore the properties of induced magnetic dipoles and will examine this phenomenon directly from Jupiter's moon, Europa. These properties will be used to determine if there is liquid water beneath its icy surface and how this conclusion was verified. This will be accomplished using the concepts of magnetic dipoles and induced currents. Recent missions have also revealed estimates of the depth of Europa's subsurface ocean. There have been many measurements taken of Europa's magnetic field, and they are …

Pluto’S Classification, Saylor Bane

Classical Conversations

Nearly 100 years ago, astronomers hypothesized that a large celestial object, nicknamed “Planet X,” must be pulling two planets out of their typical heliocentric orbits. After racing to find this celestial object for decades, Clyde Tombaugh found a faint sparkling speck of light and announced that he had finally discovered Planet X. Later, Tombaugh’s discovery was named Pluto and immediately deemed the ninth planet. As technology improved, many other celestial objects were found lurking in the outer limits of the solar system leading to worldwide confusion over which were official planets. To solve the problem, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) …

Galactic Preservation And Beyond: A Framework For Protecting Cultural, Natural, And Scientific Heritage In Space, Matthew Rosendahl

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

In July 2017, Moon Express, a private spaceflight company, announced plans to build an outpost on the South Pole of the Moon by 2020. The goal? To mine the Moon for minerals and water that could then be sold for profit. Indeed, the Moon has been found to possess resources with lucrative uses, both in space and here on Earth. The potential for huge rewards has incentivized several private and governmental actors to launch planned expeditions to the Moon, with China becoming the third nation to land a spacecraft there in 2013. Both China and India have since announced plans …

Measurement Of Solar Spectral Irradiance And Surface Ozone At Carrollton, Georgia, Usa, During The Great American Eclipse On 21 August 2017, Kirthi Tennakone, L Ajith Desilva, Charles A. Zander*, Shea Rose, Austin B. Kerlin

Georgia Journal of Science

Measurements conducted at the University of West Georgia, Carrollton, Georgia, during the time of the solar eclipse of 21^st August 2017 demonstrated that the integrated spectral irradiance in defined wavelength ranges in the ultraviolet and visible calculated as a fraction of the total irradiance reached a minimum at maximum obscuration of the Sun, whereas in an infrared range it was maximum. The method of analysis adopted supports the view that the changes in spectral irradiance during highly obscured partial phases is a consequence of limb darkening. In a surface ozone measurement, a minimum in ozone concentration occurred 30 +_ …

Engaging The Greater Lafayette Community In A Journey Through The Earth Sciences: Purdue’S Eaps Earth Science Passport Day Event, Dara Laczniak, Bradley Garczynski

Engagement & Service-Learning Summit

No abstract provided.

The Limited Reign Of Saturn's Rings, Laurence A. Marschall

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications

Saturn’s rings—stretching tens of thousands of miles above its equator but no more than a few hundred yards thick—mark an ancient debris field of orbiting ice shards, the remains of a moon-sized object that strayed too close and was torn to pieces by Saturn’s intense gravitation. Astronomers have debated when the rings formed and how long they will stay in orbit. Recent observations from large, land-based telescopes and orbiting spacecraft reveal that Saturn’s rings are remarkably young and are dissipating at a rapid rate. [excerpt]

Applications Of Information Theory In Solar And Space Physics, Jay R. Johnson, Simon Wing

Faculty Publications

Characterizing and modeling processes at the sun and space plasma in our solar system are difficult because the underlying physics is often complex, nonlinear, and not well understood. The drivers of a system are often nonlinearly correlated with one another, which makes it a challenge to understand the relative effects caused by each driver. However, entropy-based information theory can be a valuable tool that can be used to determine the information flow among various parameters, causalities, untangle the drivers, and provide observational constraints that can help guide the development of the theories and physics-based models. We review two examples of …

Astronomy For Educators, Daniel E. Barth

Open Educational Resources

Astronomy for Educators provides new and accomplished K-12 instructors with concepts and projects for low-cost, high-impact STEM classroom instruction that is built around the National Academies National Research Council's K-12 Framework for Science Education.

Ua66/11/1 Ogden College Of Science & Engineering Physics & Astronomy Publications, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Publications by and about the Department of Physics and Astronomy.

The Dark Sky Character Of Archaeological Landscapes: Cultural Meaning And Conservation Strategies, Frank Prendergast

Book/Book Chapter

This paper presents the first ever study of light pollution at selected Irish prehistoric archaeological landscapes. The concepts of cosmology and landscape are first briefly described and followed by a summary of early human settlement of the island. Building on this, the extant corpus of early prehistoric megalithic burial tombs is illustrated to show their contrasting distribution patterns and typology. Analysis of tomb locations using nearest-neighbour statistical methods reveals evidence of intentional clustering. Further geo-statistical analysis identifies the geographical locations and the density ranking of these nucleated clusters - a feature especially evident in the passage tomb tradition on this …

Ua66/12 Ogden College Of Science & Engineering Hardin Planetarium, Wku Archives

WKU Archives Collection Inventories

Records created by and about the Hardin Planetarium.

The Undeniable Attraction Of Lunar Swirls, Dany Waller

Posters-at-the-Capitol Presentations

Lunar swirls are complex patterns on the Moon with distinct brightness signatures and magnetic characteristics. Current research has suggested that the formation of lunar swirls relies on local magnetic fields to shield impinging solar wind, based on a shift in electromagnetic wavelength peaks related to solar radiation and space weathering. Our research combined recent models and methods to characterize these anomalies at the surface of the Moon, exploring the effects of field strength and position. We have produced a high resolution map of a famous swirl named Reiner Gamma using magnetic dipole modeling. These maps and models are considered when …

The Search For Microbial Martian Life And American Buddhist Ethics, Daniel S. Capper

Faculty Publications

Multiple searches hunt for extraterrestrial life, yet the ethics of such searches in terms of fossil and possible extant life on Mars have not been sufficiently delineated. In response, in this essay I propose a tripartite ethic for searches for microbial Martian life that consists of default nonharm toward potential living beings, default nonharm to the habitats of potential living beings, but also responsible, restrained scientific harvesting of some microbes in limited transgression of these default nonharm modes. Although this multifaceted ethic remains secular and hence adaptable to space research settings, it arises from both a qualitative analysis of authoritative …

Electron Model Based On Helmholtz’S Electron Vortex Theory & Kolmogorov’S Theory Of Turbulence, Florentin Smarandache, Victor Christianto, Robert Neil Boyd

Branch Mathematics and Statistics Faculty and Staff Publications

In this paper, we explore a new electron model based on Helmholtz’s electron vortex and Kolmogorov theory of turbulence. We also discuss a new model of origination of charge and matter.