Earth & Planetary Science

Watch

• Eight Wonders Of Our Solar System | The Planets | BBC Earth Science ↗BBC Earth Science
• Five Wonders of our Universe | Universe | BBC Earth Science ↗BBC Earth Science
• Uncovering the Secrets of the Sun (Full Episode) | National Geographic ↗National Geographic
• Solar System 101 | National Geographic ↗National Geographic
• A Traveler's Guide to the Planets Full Episode | Saturn | @natgeokids ↗Nat Geo Kids

Read

• Cosmos ↗A lyrical and expansive journey through the cosmos, offering a profound perspective on humanity's place within the vastness of the universe.Carl Sagan
• The Story of Earth: The First 4.5 Billion Years, from Stardust to Human Dominance ↗An illuminating chronicle of our planet's four-and-a-half-billion-year saga, revealing how geology and biology have intertwined to shape its destiny.Robert M. Hazen
• Rare Earth: Why Complex Life Is Uncommon in the Universe ↗A provocative argument challenging the assumption of abundant extraterrestrial life, detailing the unique confluence of factors that made Earth habitable.Peter Ward and Donald Brownlee
• A new class of faults and their bearing on continental driftA seminal paper that introduced the concept of transform faults, providing a crucial piece in the puzzle of plate tectonics and revolutionising Earth science.J. Tuzo Wilson
• Principles of Planetary Climate ↗A rigorous and comprehensive treatise on the physical principles governing planetary atmospheres, essential for understanding climate dynamics across the solar system.Raymond T. Pierrehumbert

Voices to follow

• Neil deGrasse Tyson ↗His accessible explanations demystify complex cosmic phenomena, making the universe comprehensible to a broad public.Astrophysicist and science communicator, Director of the Hayden Planetarium
• Sara Seager ↗A leading pioneer in the search for exoplanets and biosignatures, pushing the boundaries of humanity's understanding of life beyond Earth.Professor of Planetary Science and Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Ellen Stofan ↗Her leadership in space exploration and geological expertise offer invaluable insights into planetary evolution and the future of human presence in space.Planetary Geologist, Director of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, former NASA Chief Scientist
• Carolyn Porco ↗Her work in capturing and interpreting iconic images of the outer solar system has profoundly shaped public perception and scientific understanding of planetary dynamics.Planetary Scientist, imaging team leader for the Cassini mission to Saturn

Glossary

• AsteroidA small, rocky object that orbits the Sun, usually much smaller than a planet. Most asteroids are found in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. For example, scientists track asteroids to make sure none are on a collision course with Earth.
• AtmosphereA layer of gases that surrounds a planet or other celestial body, held in place by gravity. It protects the surface and can support life. For example, Earth's atmosphere contains the air we breathe and protects us from harmful radiation from the Sun.
• GalaxyA massive group of stars, gas, dust, and dark matter all held together by gravity. Galaxies come in different shapes and sizes. For example, our Solar System is just a tiny part of the Milky Way Galaxy, which contains billions of stars.
• GravityA natural force that pulls objects towards each other. The more mass an object has, the stronger its gravitational pull. For example, gravity is what keeps you on the ground and prevents you from floating off into space.
• MoonA natural satellite, which is a celestial body that orbits a planet. Most planets in our Solar System have one or more moons. For example, the bright object you see in the night sky is Earth's Moon, which orbits our planet.
• OrbitThe curved path an object takes as it moves around another, much larger object due to gravity. Planets orbit stars, and moons orbit planets. For example, the Earth completes one orbit around the Sun every year, causing the seasons to change.
• PlanetA large, round object in space that orbits a star and has cleared its path of other debris. It's big enough for its own gravity to pull it into a spherical shape. For example, Earth is a planet that orbits our Sun.
• Solar SystemA collection of planets, moons, asteroids, and comets that all orbit a central star. Our Solar System includes the Sun and everything that travels around it. For example, Jupiter, Mars, and Earth are all part of the same Solar System, orbiting the Sun.
• StarA giant ball of hot, glowing gas that produces its own light and heat through nuclear reactions. Our Sun is a star. For example, at night, the tiny points of light you see in the sky are distant stars, much like our own Sun.
• UniverseEverything that exists, including all matter, energy, planets, stars, galaxies, and the space between them. It's incredibly vast and still expanding. For example, thinking about the sheer size of the Universe makes you realize how small our Earth is in the grand scheme of things.

Threads 4

Where this connects to other fields, and why it's worth knowing.

• Sleep Health

  Almost every cell in your body runs a tiny clock set to roughly 24 hours, tuned to Earth spinning once a day. Fly across the planet or work the night shift and you're forcing your biology to fight the rotation of the world. Jet lag is literally your cells arguing with the spin of the Earth.

• The Meaning of Life Philosophy

  Geologists discovered the Earth is 4.5 billion years old, and all of human history is a paper-thin smudge at the very top of that stack. Realizing how tiny our slice of time is rattled people as much as learning Earth isn't the center of the universe. 'Deep time' quietly resized what a single human life could even mean.

• Creation Myths and Origin Stories Religion

  Cultures all over the world tell of a great flood, and some may be blurry memories of real catastrophes, like ice-age meltwater lakes bursting their dams and drowning whole regions. The story got passed down for thousands of years, long after anyone remembered the actual event. A sacred myth can be geology, compressed and retold around the fire.

• Revolutions & Upheaval History

  A volcano in Iceland helped bring down a king in France. When Laki erupted in 1783, it poisoned the skies and wrecked harvests across Europe, deepening the hunger that helped ignite the French Revolution years later. Sometimes the trigger of a political explosion is buried deep in the Earth.