Planetology

Planetology, also known as planetary science, is the interdisciplinary study of planetary bodies and systems. It covers a broad range of topics including the composition and formation of planets, moons, and asteroids, along with the larger systems they compose.

• Geological studies are concerned with the solid components of a body and how they’re affected by forces such as tectonics, weathering, impact events, tidal effects, and solar energy. Geology also includes fields that study rocks for the history within them to learn more about a world’s formation and evolution.

• Atmospheric sciences study the atmospheres and weather systems of terrestrial bodies and gas giants; disciplines in this field examine how the chemical makeup and balance of a world’s atmosphere are affected by internal and external forces.

• Celestial dynamics is a field of physics concerned with the complex interactions of planetary systems, ranging in scale from solar system structure to the orbits of individual asteroids. Focus areas include the distribution of asteroid fields, irregular orbit mechanics, and oort cloud densities.

Planetology seeks to catalog and understand the complex interactions and circumstances that give rise to the variety of celestial environments found throughout known space. This information can be used in a variety of ways, including predicting arrangements of orbital systems using incomplete data (which can be of value for future colonization efforts) or to enhance the accuracy of simulated environments.