Course Outline
| Instructor: Dr.
Kyle Min Office Location: 361 Williamson Hall, (352)392-2720 Office Hours: T 3-4 pm, Th 3-4 pm, or by appointment |
| Lecture Section: Tuesday and
Thursday, periods 4-5 (10:40 am - 12:00 pm) Classroom: 210 Williamson Hall Course Credit: 3 |
| Required Textbook: An Introduction to the Solar System, 2004, by Neil McBride and Lain Gilmour, The Open University and Cambridge University Press |
| Course Description: GLY 2042 is an introductory course that focuses on various geologic aspects of planets and their moons in the solar system. Formation, evolution and nature of the solar system, and its large solid bodies, can be inferred directly from meteorites and indirectly from a wide range of data obtained from spacecrafts and telescopes. To understand other planetary bodies, it is essential to understand ¡°geologic processes¡± occurring in Earth and Earth¡¯s moon, therefore a brief overview on these processes will be given during the beginning stage of the course. The course will also cover smaller planetary bodies such as asteroids and comets which are important components of the solar system. |
Grading: 1st Midterm (100 pts) + 2nd
Midterm (120 pts) + Final (120 pts) + Class Presentation/Discussion/Report
(40 pts) = 380 pts. It will NOT be curved which means your grade will
not be affected by performance of other students. 100-normalized scores
in the range of 85-100 (A), 77.5-85 (B+), 70-77.5 (B), 65-70 (C+), 60-65
(C), 55-60 (D+), 50-55 (D) and below 50 (E). |
| Class Materials: The slides shown in the class will be posted on the web, but there will be blackboard writings, simple experiments and in-class calculations which will not be available on the web. Therefore, I strongly recommend to make notes on your own notebook during the class. |
Class Web Address: http://www.clas.ufl.edu/users/kmin/GLY2042/GLY2042(Spring 2008).htm |
Course Schedule
Following schedule is subject to change without notice.
Please check this class website regularly.
| Month | Day | Topic | Reading | Class Materials |
| January | 8 | Introduction | ||
| 10 | Geologic Processes - Overview | Slides, Handout | ||
| 15 | Solar System - Overview | Ch. 1 | Slides, Handout | |
| 17 | Internal Structure of Terrestrial Planets(1) | Ch. 2 | Slides, | |
| 22 | Internal Structure of Terrestrial Planets(2) | Ch. 2 |
Slides, Handout | |
| 24 | Formation of the Earth's Moon |
Ch. 2 | Slides | |
| 29 | Internal Structure of Terrestrial Planets(3) | Ch. 2 | Slides | |
| 31 | Planetary Volcanism(1) | Ch. 3 (p.83-94) | Slides | |
| February | 5 | Planetary Volcanism(2) | Ch. 3 (p.94-106) | Slides |
| 7 | 1st Midterm (Feb 7) | Ch. 1, 2, 3 (p.3-106) | Results | |
| 12 | Planetary Volcanism(3) | Ch. 3 (p.106-125) | ||
| 14 | Planetary Surface Processes(1) | Ch. 4 (p. 127-145) | Slides | |
| 19 | Planetary Surface Processes(2) | Ch. 4 (p. 145-156) | Slides, Handout | |
| 21 | Atmosphere of Terrestrial Planets(1) | Ch. 5 (p. 157-165, 170-173) | Slides | |
| 26 | Atmosphere of Terrestrial Planets(2) | Ch. 5 (p.174-175, 179-181, 189-194) | Slides | |
| 28 | The Giant Planets(1) | Ch. 6 (p.201-213) | Slides | |
| March | 4 | 2nd Midterm (Mar 4) | Results | |
| 10-15 | Spring Break - No Class | |||
| 18 | The Giant Planets(2) | Ch. 6 (p.217-221, 223-230, 223-235) | Slides | |
| 20 | Celestial Mechanics | Ch. 7 (p. 245-251) | Slides | |
| 25 | Asteroid | Ch. 7 (p. 251-261) | Slides | |
| 27 | Comet | Ch. 7 (p. 262-274) | Slides | |
| April | 1 | Student Presentation/Discussion 1 | ||
| 3 | Student Presentation/Discussion 2 | |||
| 8 | Interplanetary Dust Particle | Ch. 7 (p. 275-280) | Slides | |
| 10 | Meteorites + Lab Tour | Ch. 9 (p. 315-323) | Slides | |
| 15 | Meteorites (Chondrites, Martian Meteorites) | Ch. 9 (p. 323-335) | Slides | |
| 17 | The Origin of the Solar System + Review for Final Exam | Ch. 8 (p. 281-297) | Slides, Slides | |
| 22 | Final Exam (Apr 22) | Ch. 7, 8, 9 (~100 pages) |
*Student Presentation/Discussion
Each student will give a presentation and lead discussion on a specific subject. About 20 minutes will be given to each student.
| Temporary Title (April 1: Tues ) and (April 3: Thurs) | Student | Materials |
| Exploring the Solar System: Historical View | 1, 2 | |
| Venus: The Twin of the Earth-Tectonism and Volcanism, too? | Christie | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| What is Panspermia Hypothesis? | Jacob | 1, 2, 3 |
| Lunar Surface | Olivia | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| Atmosphere of Mars | Allison | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 |
| Storms on Giant Planets | Jaleesa | 1, 2 |
| Influence of Jupiter on small bodies (e.g., SL-9) | Lance | 1, 2, 3 |
Follow-up report is due April 15 (before the class). The report should start with brief introduction (1 paragraph is enough) followed by summary of your presentation. Although the main text should be no more than 2 pages (font 11, single space), you can attach figures or tables as supplementary documents. It is not allowed to simply copy and paste texts from other sources (website, textbook, journals etc). If you want to quote texts from other sources, specify them. The list of referneces will not count toward your 2-page limit.
Important
Notes on Exams
There will be no make-up exams. If you cannot take exams for any reason, please
let me know IN ADVANCE
and be prepared to provide relevant OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS for
partial credit. Any post-exam excuses without
pre-exam notice will allow very limited credit. Missing one exam will be critical
in your final grade, and I recommend to drop this class if you cannot make
the three exams. Exam dates are posted, so please make sure your schedule
does not conflict with these exam dates.
Notes for
Students with Disabilities
Students requesting classroom accommodation must first register with the Dean
of Students Office.
The Dean of Students Office will provide documentation to the student who
must then provide this documentation
to the Instructor when requesting accommodation.
Useful Links
