The large rocky asteroid 4 Vesta has a similar structure possibly so does the smaller one 21 Lutetia. Terrestrial planets have a solid planetary surface, making them substantially different from the larger gaseous planets, which are composed mostly of some combination of hydrogen, helium, and water existing in various physical states.Īll terrestrial planets in the Solar System have the same basic structure, such as a central metallic core (mostly iron) with a surrounding silicate mantle. Terrestrial planets are generally studied by geologists, astronomers, and geophysicists. The terms "terrestrial planet" and "telluric planet" are derived from Latin words for Earth ( Terra and Tellus), as these planets are, in terms of structure, Earth-like. Among astronomers who use the geophysical definition of a planet, two or three planetary-mass satellites – Earth's Moon, Io, and sometimes Europa – may also be considered terrestrial planets and so may be the rocky protoplanet-asteroids Pallas and Vesta. Within the Solar System, the terrestrial planets accepted by the IAU are the inner planets closest to the Sun: Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars. The terrestrial planets of the Solar System: Mercury, Venus, and the Earth and Mars, sized to scaleĪ terrestrial planet, telluric planet, solid planet, or rocky planet, is a planet that is composed primarily of silicate rocks or metals.
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