rocky planet
Solid-surfaced celestial body
A rocky planet is a planet composed primarily of silicate rocks and metals, with a solid surface rather than a gaseous exterior.
In our solar system, Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars are the rocky planets, also called terrestrial planets, distinguished from the gas giants Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.
Rocky planets tend to be smaller and denser than their gaseous counterparts, with defined crusts, mantles, and cores.
Messenger god or planet
Oxygen-bound crystal compound
- ironElement twenty-six
- nickelElement twenty-eight, or coin
- basaltFine-grained volcanic stone
- graniteIgneous rock, quartz-rich
crust · mantle · core · lithosphere · regolith · minerals · igneous · metamorphic
H2O in flowing state
- atmosphereGaseous layer around planets
- Goldilocks zoneLife-permitting stellar region
- temperateMild, avoiding extremes
- biosignaturesDetectable signs of life
astrobiology · climate · habitable zone · exobiology · habitability · magnetic field · radiation shielding · surface pressure
Impact-formed depressions
- mountainsTall elevated landmasses
- canyonsDeep, narrow valleys
- plainsBroad, level grasslands
- volcanismSubterranean magma expulsion process
erosion · landforms · geology · regolith · basins · cliffs · ridges · scarps
Violent governmental overthrow
- ellipseConic section curve
- gravityMutual mass attraction
- aphelionFarthest point from sun
- perihelionOrbital point nearest sun
eccentricity · inclination · axial tilt · transit · retrograde · prograde · year · resonance
Drifter or space explorer
- landerSpacecraft for surface arrival
- spacecraftVehicle for outer space
- orbiterBody circling another
- missionPurpose-driven task
flyby · probe · remote sensing · spectrometry · mapping · drill · seismometer · magnetometer
Mercury
Messenger god or planet
silicate
Oxygen-bound crystal compound
granite · crust · mantle · core · lithosphere · regolith · minerals · igneous · metamorphic · sedimentary
liquid water
H2O in flowing state
- atmosphereGaseous layer around planets
- Goldilocks zoneLife-permitting stellar region
- temperateMild, avoiding extremes
biosignatures · astrobiology · climate · habitable zone · exobiology · habitability · magnetic field · radiation shielding · surface pressure · greenhouse effect
craters
Impact-formed depressions
volcanism · erosion · landforms · geology · regolith · basins · cliffs · ridges · scarps · lava flows
revolution
Violent governmental overthrow
perihelion · eccentricity · inclination · axial tilt · transit · retrograde · prograde · year · resonance · perturbation
rover
Drifter or space explorer
- landerSpacecraft for surface arrival
- spacecraftVehicle for outer space
- orbiterBody circling another
mission · flyby · probe · remote sensing · spectrometry · mapping · drill · seismometer · magnetometer · radar
- planetsEarth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Venus
- space mattermeteor, meteoroid, meteorite, moon, asteroid
- outer spacesun, moon, star system, solar system, comet
- solar systemsun, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn
- planetary formationplanetesimals, protoplanet, solar nebula, planetesimal, snow line