- Docente: Tiziano Maestri
- Credits: 6
- SSD: FIS/06
- Language: Italian
- Teaching Mode: Traditional lectures
- Campus: Bologna
- Corso: First cycle degree programme (L) in Astronomy (cod. 8004)
Learning outcomes
At the end of the course the Student is able to analyze the planetary atmospheres as physical systems. He learns the phenomenology and equations governing the fundamental physical processes occurring in the planetary atmospheres. The Student is able to interpret simple models of greenhouse effect and to link climatic patterns with orbital parameters of Planets.
Course contents
1) Introduction What is a planet and why a planet is round
and smooth. The planets of the solar system.
2) Origin and composition of the Solar
System Cosmogonic theories, the nebular theory. Physical features of the porto-planetary nebula. Angular momentum conservation. The accretion theory. Oort cloud and kuiper belt.
Satellites and rings, the Roche limit. Minor bodies of the solar
system: nanoplanets, asteorids, comets, meteorits. Transneptunian
objects. Origin of the moon.
3) Main characteristics of the Earth and Planets
atmosphere Composition and chemical evolution:
secondary atmosphere. Mass escape mechanisms (Jeans Escape). Mean
thermal structure. The Stratosphere and the role of the Ozone
layer. Thermal vertical profile of internal and external planets
and Titan.
4) Thermodynamics of the Atmosphere Air
parcel concept. The gas laws applied to the real atmospheres.
Hydrostatic balance and hypsometric equation. Dry air: adiabatic
processes and lapse rate. Diabatic processes and diabatic
stratification.
5) Hydrostatic Stability Buoyancy force and
vertical velocities. Static stability and the Brunt Vaisala
frequency. Categories of static stability for dry air and
convection. Auto-convective gradient.
6) Water Vapour and Condensed Phases in the
Atmosphere Water vapour saturation pressure and phase
changes. Adiabatic lapse rate for saturated air (pseudo-adiabats).
Condensed states in atmospheric planets: clouds and hazes.
7) Fundamentals of Radiative Transfer and greenhouse effect
models Electromagnetic spectrum. Solid angle and main
radiometric quantities. Black body radiance and its fundamental
laws. Kirchhoff's law. The differential equation of the
radiative transfer for absorbing and emitting
processes. Schwarzschild's solution for a plane parallel
atmosphere.
8) The Sun The structure. Luminosity and
measure of the Solar Constant. The solar spectrum. Sun radiation
and atmospheric particles and gas
interaction. Insolation.
9) Radiative Equilibrium and emission temperature of a
Planet Albedo. Basic model for a planet in radiative
balance. Emission temperature and variation of the solar constant
and of the spherical albedo. Mean surface temperature and emission
temperature.
10) More on
radiative transfer Greenhouse 1-d
model. Greenhouse parameter. The Venus case and the Sandstrom
theorem. Radiative equilibrium in a plane parallel and grey
atmosphere. Runaway green-house effect (Venus, Earth and
Mars). Time radiative constants. Global energy budgets for multiple planets.
11) Simple Climatic Models Thermal
inertia of an ocean and an atmosphere. 0-d models and feedback
processes. Energy balance 1-d climatic models:
Budyko-Sellers. Milankovitch theory: orbital parameters and
climatic patterns. Experimental data and glacial eras.
Readings/Bibliography
T. Maestri. Planetary Atmospheres. Available directly from the
teacher.
C. Bartolini, M. Benelli, L. Solmi: DVD-ROM "Viaggio nel Sistema Solare" (2011) available at the Physics andAstronomy Department viale Berti-Pichat.
John M. Wallace and Peter V. Hobbs. Atmospheric Science: An Introductory Survey Academic Press, 1997.
Joseph W. Chamberlain and Donald M. Hunten. Theory of Planetary Atmospheres: An Introduction to Their Physics and Chemistry Aca- demic Press, 1987.
D. L. Hartmann. Global Physical Climatology Academic Press, 1994.
Murry L. Salby Fundamentals of Atmospheric Physics Academic Press, 1996.
Bradley W. Carroll , Dale A. Ostlie. An introduction to modern astrophysics, Pearson Addison-Wesley, 2007Teaching methods
The teacher will discuss the program content (6 ects) by using the
blackboard and by exploiting the video projector. Simple exercises
will be solved during the classes to facilitate the understanding
of the theoretical part of the program. It is foreseen the
discussion of some of the most recent scientific articles
concerning the topics of the course.
Assessment methods
The verification of the student's learning occurs through an oral
test that will evaluate the achievements of the main objectives of
the course:
*) understanding the physical laws regulating a planet and its
evolution *) interpreting simplified physical model applied
to a complex system *) ability to identify the main
parameters affecting and determining the thermal structure of an
atmosphere
The oral test will cover the whole program and allows the student
to discuss a brief written research of his choice concerning a
specific topic. The oral test will last at about 1 hour and
15 minutes.
Teaching tools
The following items will be available to the Students:
* Lectures notes (on paper and/or electronics).
* Scientific articles useful for the investigation of specific
research lines.
* Software algorithms for the numerical solution of specific
problems.
* Materials on dvd
* Bibliography and references
Links to further information
Office hours
See the website of Tiziano Maestri