Of all the planets which may exist in the Universe, only nine have been studied by man. As a result, one cannot classify planets with the same confidence that one has in classifying stars; there is no theory of planetary evolution comparable in development to the theory of stellar evolution. Nevertheless, many of the goals of planetary science and stellar astronomy are the same: to classify obj...

[1] Previous attempts to establish global mass balances for polychlorinated dioxins and furans (PCDD/Fs) have focused on the terrestrial sink, thereby neglecting deposition to the oceans and atmospheric losses. In this study, the atmospheric sink of polychlorinated dioxins and furans (PCDD/Fs) was calculated on the basis of their presence in soils. OH radical ([OH]) depletion reactions compete ...

Carbon dioxide records from polar ice cores and marine ocean sediments indicate that the last glacial maximum (LGM) atmosphere C02 content was 80-90 pprn lower than the mid-Holocene. This represents a transfer of over 160 GtC into the atmosphere since the LGM. Palaeovegetation studies suggest that up to 1350 GtC was transferred from the oceans to the terrestrial biosphere at the end of the last...

Introduction. Diverse origins of terrestrial planet atmospheres are inferred from differences in the noble gas abundances and isotope ratios observed on Venus, Earth, and Mars [e.g., 1, 2]. Models for the origin of terrestrial atmospheres typically require an intricate sequence of events, including substantial loss and isotopic fractionation of solar nebula gases, outgassed mantle volatiles, an...

Silicon tetrafluoride (SiF4) is observed in terrestrial volcanic gases and is predicted to be the major F – bearing species in low temperature volcanic gases on Io (Schaefer and Fegley, 2005b). SiF4 gas is also a potential indicator of silica – rich crust on Io. We used F/S ratios in terrestrial and extraterrestrial basalts, and gas/lava enrichment factors for F and S measured at terrestrial vo...

[1] We introduce new vector diffractive integrals, which can be used for the radio holographic remote sensing of the atmosphere and terrestrial surfaces. These integrals are exact relationships connecting the electromagnetic fields known at some interface or curve in space with radio fields on the terrestrial surface or inside the atmosphere. They allow one to restore the radio image of the atm...

Context. Although transit spectroscopy is a very powerful method for studying the composition, thermal properties, and dynamics of exoplanet atmospheres, only a few transiting terrestrial exoplanets will be close enough to allow significant transit spectroscopy with the current and forthcoming generations of instruments. Thermal phase curves (variations in the apparent infrared emission of the ...

The terrestrial biosphere interacts with the free atmosphere through exchange of momentum, energy and mass [...]

Microbial taxa from every major biological lineage have been detected in Earth's upper atmosphere. The goal of this review is to communicate (1) relevant astrobiology questions that can be addressed with upper atmosphere microbiology studies and (2) available sampling methods for collecting microbes at extreme altitudes. Precipitation, mountain stations, airplanes, balloons, rockets, and satell...

Introduction In the broad context of planetary science, Mars represents an important transition between the outer volatile-rich, more oxidised regions of the accretion zone of the terrestrial bodies (asteroid belt) and the inner, more refractory and less oxidised regions from which Earth, Venus and Mercury accreted. Its size, the degree of internal activity, the age of its surface features, and...