Publisher's Synopsis
The Earth's evolution is a part of the evolution of the Solar System and of matter itself. Abundances of chemical elements can be explained only by going back to the formation of planets and earlier, to the nucleosynthesis processes. Comparisons with other planets, at different stages of development are necessary in the study of the formation and growth of the Earth's core. The same can be said of the global mobility of the outer layers of the Earth - the lithosphere. Consequently, the Earth's evolution can not be treated separately, but should be described within a broader framework.;This fifth volume in the series presents ideas on evolution of the Universe, the Planetary System and the Earth. It explains the formation and early evolution of the Earth and Planets, presenting an introduction and providing background to problems of the Earth's evolution and plate tectonics - the problems to be presented in the last volume of the series. A synopsis of the achievements of cosmology is followed by a discussion of primordial nucleosynthesis, the formation of structures in the Universe, nucleosynthesis in star interiors and the formation of galaxies. Theories related to the formation of the Planetary System and reviews of the main parameters characterizing planetary bodies are also presented. A discussion on the origin of planetary bodies, based mainly on accretion theories provides evidence for the mantle-core structure of planets and their models. Chemical processes, the formation of minerals, heat processes and heat transfer, the formation of cores in the terrestrial group of planets and some elements of their magnetic fields complete the volume.;This continuation of the monograph series will be of interest to scientists in the domain of the Earth sciences, especially geophysicists and geologists. The monograph combines results obtained in geophysics and planetology with a rigorous physical approach. Neverthless, it can be understood without a specialist background or higher mathematics.
