Lecture 1

PHYS1040: Planets and the search for life

Dr Stella Bradbury
[email protected]
Dr Sue Bowler
[email protected]
Assessment:
2 in-course assessments (15% total)
due in week 7 and week 10
Exam (85%)
PHYS1040 Planets and the Search for Life
Lecture 1
Lecture 1
PHYS1040: Planets and the search for life
Quantitative assessment:
Calculations, estimations, using diagrams and graphs
no formulae to remember,
BUT you need to understand formulae.
Qualitative assessment:
Definitions, explanations, comparisons etc.
Scientific reasoning
Short answers only no essays!
PHYS1040 Planets and the Search for Life
Lecture 1
Lecture 1
PHYS1040: Planets and the search for life
Origin of the elements and complex molecules
Formation and evolution of the solar system; signs of life
Planets around other stars
The Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence
Textbook: An introduction to astrobiology (revised edition)
by Rothery, Gilmore and Sephton (OUP)
PHYS1040 Planets and the Search for Life
Lecture 1
Lecture 1
PHYS1040 Planets and the Search for Life
Lecture 1
What is life made of ? 83 stable elements exist in nature, but just 4 of them - H, O, C, and N -
comprise more than 95% (by weight) of the matter that we call alive!
In striking contrast, the 4 most abundant elements composing the Earth are Silicon, Iron,
Magnesium, and Oxygen. The composition of living matter resembles the composition of the stars
more closely than the composition of Earth!
H 91% O 47% N 78% H 63% H 61%
He 8.9 Si 28 O 21 O 29 O 26
O 0.08 Al 8.1 Ar 0.93 C 6.4 C 10.5
C 0.03 Fe 5.0 C 0.04 N 1.4 N 2.4
Sun
Earths
Crust
Earths
atmosphere
Bacteria
Human
Beings
Lecture 1
PHYS1040 Planets and the Search for Life
Lecture 1
If we add calcium and phosphorous to our four basic elements (H, C, N, O) we account for 98.6% of
living matter by weight.
The remaining 1.4% consists of sulfur, magnesium, chlorine, potassium, sodium, iodine, and iron,
plus tiny amounts of manganese, molybdenum, silicon, fluorine, copper and zinc.
Lecture 1
Hydrogen
We will look at how and where Carbon and heavier elements are formed in lecture 2. Hydrogen,
as the lightest element, is our basic nuclear building block so we should first consider its origin.
PHYS1040 Planets and the Search for Life
Lecture 1
Big Bang Model
According to the standard Big Bang Model, at the start of the universe space appeared with the
whole universe contained within a single point.
The universe was small a singularity.
A place where the laws of physics as we know them break down.
What happened to trigger the start of our Universe and what was it like at the moment of
conception?
Did the Universe expand like a bubble from a quantum fluctuation in the energy of the
vacuum?
Are there other universes forming like bubbles inside a liquid?
PHYS1040 Planets and the Search for Life
Lecture 1
But, by understanding where matter comes from, and how it interacts, we are closer to
understanding how the universe evolved.
It is thought that between 10
43
seconds and 10
-35
seconds after the Big Bang, the universe went
through rapid expansion and the temperature dropped from about 10
32
K to 10
27
K.
Fundamental particles started to form; quarks and gluons.
At around 10
-6
seconds the quark-gluon plasma was cool enough to condense to form protons,
neutrons etc.
The universe was a sea of electromagnetic radiation (gamma-ray photons), particles and anti-
particles.
PHYS1040 Planets and the Search for Life
For a gentle introduction to Big Bang cosmology see for example
Astronomy The Evolving Universe by Zeilik
Astronomy A Beginners Guide to the Universe by Chaisson & McMillan
Lecture 1
Particle-antiparticle annihilation occurs when matter and anti-matter destroy each other in a
burst of gamma-rays.
The reverse is called Pair Production. It happens spontaneously if there are photons present with
enough energy to form massive particles in accordance with E = mc
2
. This required a high
temperature.
At T > 10
13
K proton/antiproton pairs
were continually created/annihilated.
The process continued for lighter
particles such as electrons/positrons
until T < 10
9
K.
As the universe cooled pair production stopped but annihilation continued.
Luckily for us the number of particles was actually very slightly larger than the number of anti-
particles!
PHYS1040 Planets and the Search for Life
Zeilik Fig. 20.10
Lecture 1
Primordial Nucleosynthesis
At around 100 seconds after the Big Bang, when the temperature of the universe dropped to
below 10
9
K, atomic nuclei started to form.
Temperature low enough for protons and neutrons to be held together by gluons.
Nuclei generated during this period are said to be Primordial.
Neutrons are only stable when in atomic nuclei.
A free neutron has an average lifetime of only 15 minutes before it will decay into a proton + an
electron.
The most important nuclear reaction was the combination of a proton and a neutron to form
deuterium (a.k.a. heavy hydrogen)
2
H. This then formed the building block for Helium
PHYS1040 Planets and the Search for Life
Lecture 1
Primordial nuclei
PHYS1040 Planets and the Search for Life
About 15 minutes after the Big Bang hydrogen accounted for 75% of the normal matter in the
universe, helium 24%, and a very little deuterium, lithium and beryllium.
Electrons were still free and able to scatter electromagnetic radiation of all wavelengths the
universe was opaque.
Lecture 1
Formation of Atoms
380,000 years after the Big Bang, the temperature had dropped to a mere 3000 K too low to
keep matter fully ionised.
Positively charged nuclei began to capture enough electrons to form neutral atoms.
Once the electrons combined with nuclei to form atoms of hydrogen and helium, only
wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation corresponding to the spectral lines of those atoms
could interact with matter.
The universe became nearly transparent as a result of this decoupling.
Radiation pressure was no longer sufficient to prevent matter clumping together through
gravitational attraction.
The radiation itself continued to cool and is observed today as the microwave background.
PHYS1040 Planets and the Search for Life