Chapter 8 Earth as a Planet
8.6 For Further Exploration
For Further Exploration
Articles
Earth
Collins, W., et al. “The Physical Science behind Climate Change.” Scientific American (August 2007): 64. Why scientists are now confident that human activities are changing our planet’s climate.
Glatzmaier, G., & Olson, P. “Probing the Geodynamo.” Scientific American (April 2005): 50. Experiments and modeling that tell us about the source and reversals of Earth’s magnetic field.
Gurnis, M. “Sculpting the Earth from Inside Out.” Scientific American (March 2001): 40. On motions that lift and lower the continents.
Hartmann, W. “Piecing Together Earth’s Early History.” Astronomy (June 1989): 24.
Jewitt, D., & Young, E. “Oceans from the Skies.” Scientific American (March 2015): 36. How did Earth get its water after its initial hot period?
Impacts
Boslaugh, M. “In Search of Death-Plunge Asteroids.” Astronomy (July 2015): 28. On existing and proposed programs to search for earth-crossing asteroids.
Brusatte, S. “What Killed the Dinosaurs?” Scientific American (December 2015): 54. The asteroid hit Earth at an already vulnerable time.
Chyba, C. “Death from the Sky: Tunguska.” Astronomy (December 1993): 38. Excellent review article.
Durda, D. “The Chelyabinsk Super-Meteor.” Sky & Telescope (June 2013): 24. A nice summary with photos and eyewitness reporting.
Gasperini, L., et al. “The Tunguska Mystery.” Scientific American (June 2008): 80. A more detailed exploration of the site of the 1908 impact over Siberia.
Kring, D. “Blast from the Past.” Astronomy (August 2006): 46. Six-page introduction to Arizona’s meteor crater.
Websites
Earth
Astronaut Photography of Earth from Space: http://earth.jsc.nasa.gov/. A site with many images and good information.
Exploration of the Earth’s Magnetosphere: http://phy6.org/Education/Intro.html. An educational website by Dr. Daniel Stern.
NASA Goddard: Earth from Space: Fifteen Amazing Things in 15 Years: https://www.nasa.gov/content/goddard/earth-from-space-15-amazing-things-in-15-years. Images and videos that reveal things about our planet and its atmosphere.
U.S. Geological Survey: Earthquake Information Center: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/learn/
Views of the Solar System: http://www.solarviews.com/eng/earth.htm. Overview of Earth.
Impacts
Earth Impact Database http://www.passc.net/EarthImpactDatabase/ The Earth Impact Database (EID) comprises a list of confirmed impact structures from around the world. To date, there are 190 confirmed impact structures in the database. The database was conceived in its earliest form when a systematic search for impact craters was initiated in 1955 by the Dominion Observatory, Ottawa, Canada under the direction of Dr. Carlyle S. Beals.
B612 Foundation : https://b612foundation.org/. Set up by several astronauts for research and education about the asteroid threat to Earth and to build a telescope in space to search for dangerous asteroids.
Lunar and Planetary Institute: Introduction to Terrestrial Impact Craters: http://www.lpi.usra.edu/publications/slidesets/craters/. Includes images.
Meteor Crater Tourist Site: http://meteorcrater.com/.
NASA/Jet Propulsion Lab Near Earth Object Program: http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/neo/.
What Are Near-Earth-Objects: http://spaceguardcentre.com/what-are-neos/. From the British Spaceguard Centre.
Videos
Earth
All Alone in the Night: http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap120305.html. Flying over Earth at night (2:30).
Earth Globes Movies (including Earth at night): http://astro.uchicago.edu/cosmus/projects/earth/.
Earth: The Operator’s Manual: http://earththeoperatorsmanual.com/feature-video/earth-the-operators-manual. A National Science Foundation–sponsored miniseries on climate change and energy, with geologist Richard Alley (53:43).
PBS NOVA Videos about Earth: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/earth/. Programs and information about planet Earth. Click full episodes on the menu at left to be taken to a nice array of videos.
U. S. National Weather Service: http://earth.nullschool.net. Real Time Globe of Earth showing wind patterns which can be zoomed and moved to your preferred view.
Impacts
Chelyabinsk Meteor: Can We Survive a Bigger Impact?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-e6xyUZLLs. Talk by Dr. David Morrison (1:34:48).
Large Asteroid Impact Simulation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bU1QPtOZQZU. Large asteroid impact simulation from the Discovery Channel (4:45).
Meteor Hits Russia February 15, 2013: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpmXyJrs7iU. Archive of eyewitness footage (10:11).
Sentinel Mission: Finding an Asteroid Headed for Earth: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efz8c3ijD_A. Public lecture by astronaut Ed Lu (1:08:57).
