The Early Evolution of the Atmospheres of Terrestrial Planets (Astrophysics and Space Science Proceedings Book 35)

“The Early Evolution of the Atmospheres of Terrestrial Planets” presents the main processes participating in the atmospheric evolution of terrestrial planets. A group of experts in the different fields provide an update of our current knowledge on this topic. Several papers in this book discuss the key role of nitrogen in the atmospheric evolution of terrestrial planets. The earliest setting and evolution of planetary atmospheres of terrestrial planets is directly associated with accretion, chemical differentiation, outgassing, stochastic impacts, and extremely high energy fluxes from their host stars. This book provides an overview of the present knowledge of the initial atmospheric composition of the terrestrial planets. Additionally it includes some papers about the current exoplanet discoveries and provides additional clues to our understanding of Earth’s transition from a hot accretionary phase into a habitable world. All papers included were reviewed by experts in their respective fields. We are living in an epoch of important exoplanet discoveries, but current properties of these exoplanets do not match our scientific predictions using standard terrestrial planet models. This book deals with the main physio-chemical signatures and processes that could be useful to better understand the formation of rocky planets. Front Matter....Pages i-vi Introduction: On the Early Evolution of the Atmosphere of Terrestrial Planets: COST Action CM#0805....Pages 1-8 Nitrogen in Solar System Minor Bodies: Delivery Pathways to Primeval Earth....Pages 9-22 A Mathematic Approach to Nitrogen Fixation Through Earth History....Pages 23-31 Stability of Earth-Like N 2 Atmospheres: Implications for Habitability....Pages 33-52 Hot Super-Earth Atmospheres....Pages 53-65 The Nitrogen Chemistry in Hot Jupiters Atmosphere....Pages 67-83 Implication of Impacts in the Young Earth Sun Paradox and the Evolution of Earth’s Atmosphere....Pages 85-97 N 2 O as a Biomarker, from the Earth and Solar System to Exoplanets....Pages 99-106 Formation of a Nitrogen-Rich Atmosphere on Titan: A Review of Pre- and Post-Cassini-Huygens Knowledge....Pages 107-122 Nitrogen in the Stratosphere of Titan from Cassini CIRS Infrared Spectroscopy....Pages 123-143 Nitrogen in Titan’s Atmospheric Aerosol Factory....Pages 145-154 Nitrogen Fixation by Photochemistry in the Atmosphere of Titan and Implications for Prebiotic Chemistry....Pages 155-164 SNC Meteorites: Atmosphere Implantation Ages and the Climatic Evolution of Mars....Pages 165-172 Back Matter....Pages 173-186