Planetary Crusts: Their Composition, Origin and Evolution

by S. Ross Taylor, Scott McLennan

Overview

This is the first book ever published to explain how and why solid planets and satellites develop crusts. Written by two leading authorities on the subject, it presents a geochemical and geological survey of the crusts of the Moon, Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, the asteroid Vesta, and several satellites such as Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto. After describing how solar system bodies are formed, the authors compare the different planetary crusts and discuss current controversies on the subject. They introduce the theory of stochastic processes dominating crustal development, and debate the possibility of Earth-like planets existing elsewhere in the cosmos. Extensively referenced and annotated, this book presents an up-to-date survey of the scientific problems of crustal development, and is a key reference for researchers and students in geology, geochemistry, planetary science, astrobiology, and astronomy.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521142014
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	04/01/2010
Series:	Cambridge Planetary Science , #10
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	404
Product dimensions:	6.60(w) x 9.50(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Ross Taylor was born in New Zealand and is now an Emeritus Professor at the Australian National University. He is a trace element geochemist and carried out the initial analysis of the first lunar sample returned to Earth at NASA, Houston in
1969. He has a D.Sc. from the University of Oxford, is a Foreign Member of the US National Academy of Sciences. and has received the Goldschmidt Medal of the Geochemical Society, the Leonard Medal of the Meteoritical Society and the Bucher Medal of the American Geophysical Union. He is the author of six other books including Solar System Evolution, Second edition (Cambridge University Press, 2001). Asteroid 5670 is named Rosstaylor in his honour.

Scott M. McLennan is Professor of Geochemistry at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. He conducts research into the geochemistry of sedimentary rocks, and has published 140 papers in the fields of geochemistry, planetary science and sedimentology. Since 1998, he has applied laboratory experiments and data returned from missions to Mars to understand the sedimentary processes of that planet, and is on the science teams of the 2003 Mars Exploration Rover and 2001 Mars Odyssey missions. He received a Presidential Young Investigator Award from the National Science Foundation in 1989 and a NASA Group Achievement Award as part of the Mars Exploration Rover Science Operations Team in 2004.

Table of Contents

Preface; Acknowledgements; List of abbreviations; Prologue; Notes and references; 1. The planets: their formation and differentiation; 2. A primary crust: the highland crust of the Moon; 3. A secondary crust: the lunar maria; 4. Mercury; 5. Mars: early differentiation and planetary composition; 6. Mars: crustal composition and evolution; 7. Venus: a twin planet to Earth?; 8. The oceanic crust of the Earth; 9. The Hadean crust of the Earth; 10. The Archean crust of the Earth; 11. The post-Archean continental crust; 12. Composition and evolution of the continental crust; 13. Crusts on minor bodies; 14. Reflections: the elusive patterns of planetary crusts; Indexes.

Editorial Reviews

"Rarely does one find a book which truly examines in detail the subject of comparative planetology. This is just such a book. … an excellent starting point to delve deeper into the specific subject. … In summary this is a unique book, addressing for the first time the subject of planetary crusts from a comparative point of view in a clear and thorough manner; I recommend it to students and specialists alike." - Planetary and Space Science

"In conclusion, Planetary Crusts: Their Composition, Origin and Evolution is a well-written and researched book that would complement the library of any crustal scientist, graduate-level student studying planets, or a person curious as to how planets and their crusts came about." - The Meteoritical Society

"Taylor and McLennan do an excellent job of reviewing what is know and conjectured, arguing persuasively that Earth's crust is most anomalous in a solar system rife with idiosyncrasies. ... Highly recommended." - CHOICE

"...a comprehensive description and insightful discussion of virtually all salient aspects of the formation and the evolution of planets and their interiors." Nature Geoscience

From the Publisher