E-Book Content
Chemistry of Space DAVID E. NEWTON
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One Last Time . . . for John McArdle, Lee Nolet, Richard Olson, David Parr, David Rowand, Jeff Williams, and John D’Emilio Thanks for the memories!
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Chemistry of Space Copyright © 2007 by David E. Newton All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher. For information contact: Facts On File, Inc. An imprint of Infobase Publishing 132 West 31st Street New York NY 10001 ISBN-10: 0-8160-5274-3 ISBN-13: 978-0-8160-5274-5 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Newton, David E. Chemistry of space / David E. Newton. p. cm. — (The new chemistry) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN: 0-8160-5274-3 (acid-free paper) 1. Cosmochemistry. 2. Interstellar matter. 3. Stars—Evolution. I. Title. QB450.N49 2007 523'02—dc22 2006037373 Facts On File books are available at special discounts when purchased in bulk quantities for businesses, associations, institutions, or sales promotions. Please call our Special Sales Department in New York at (212) 967-8800 or (800) 322-8755. You can find Facts On File on the World Wide Web at http://www.factsonfile.com Text design by James Scotto-Lavino Illustrations by DiacriTech, LLC Project editing by Dorothy Cummings Printed in the United States of America MP CGI 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 This book is printed on acid-free paper.
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CONTENTS
Preface Introduction
vii ix
1
THE BIRTH OF THE UNIVERSE In the Beginning Georges Edouard Lemaître (1894–1966) A Cooling Universe Particle Decay The Formation of Compound Particles And Then There Were Atoms Is the Theory True? George Gamow (1904–1968) Where to Next?
1 1 2 5 7 8 11 13 16 19
2
THE CHEMISTRY OF INTERSTELLAR SPACE The Composition of the Interstellar Medium Interstellar Clouds Robert Julius Trumpler (1886–1956) Chemistry of the Interstellar Medium Tools for Studying the Chemical Characteristics of the ISM Hendrik Christoffel van de Hulst (1918–2000)
21 22 29 30 34
FORMATION OF THE HEAVY ELEMENTS Stellar Evolution
47 48
3
39 40
iii
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Classifying Stars Annie Jump Cannon (1863–1941) A Star Is Born Turning Hydrogen into Helium Helium Burning . . . and Beyond Bigger Stars = More Elements Margaret Burbidge (1919– ) and Geoffrey Burbidge (1925– )
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49 50 55 61 66 69 74
4
THE INNER PLANETS Studying the Chemical Composition of a Planet Mercury Venus The Hubble Space Telescope Mars Asaph Hall (1829–1907)
81 82 90 94 108 111 122
5
THE OUTER PLANETS Missions to the Outer Planets Jupiter S. Alan Stern (1957– ) The Jovian Moons Saturn Uranus Neptune Pluto James E. Webb (1906–1992) Kuiper Belt Objects Gerard Peter Kuiper (1905–1973)
126 127 132 134 143 151 156 161 164 165 167 168
6
COMETS, METEORS, ASTEROIDS, AND THE MOON Comets Edmund Halley (1656–1742) Meteors, Meteoroids, and Meteorites Asteroids The Moon
171 172 176 192 202 216
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CONCLUSION
227
Glossary Further Reading Index
229 235 239
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PREFACE
T
he subject matter covered in introductory chemistry classes at the middle and high school levels tends to be fairly traditional and relatively consistent from school to school. Topics that are typically cover