What the Solar System Can Teach Us About Rocky Exoplanets
Abstract
The number of rocky extrasolar planets being discovered continues to increase, but so too does the apparent diversity of such worlds. As we work to understand the likely bulk properties and thermal, geological, and climatological attributes we might expect of rocky exoplanets, we can look to the Solar System for guidance. Here, we review the interior, surface, and atmospheric characteristics of modern Earth, and discuss how our homeworld has changed through Solar System history. We then visit in turn Venus, Mars, Mercury and Earth's Moon, and Io, noting how these terrestrial planets are alike, how they are different, and how they have evolved through time. Finally, we consider some examples of the types of rocky worlds known or suspected to exist without direct Solar System counterparts --- but we argue that even then, for all the variety we might expect, they are still variations on a common theme. Perhaps the most important lesson the Solar System can teach us is that terrestrial bodies change through time, sometimes dramatically, and that rocky worlds of similar size and mass can have vastly different planetary outcomes.
Versions
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BibTeX
@misc{byrne2026what,
title = {{What the Solar System Can Teach Us About Rocky Exoplanets}},
author = {Paul K. Byrne and Claire Marie Guimond and Peter A. Cawood and Michael J. Way and Doris Breuer and Tilman Spohn and João C. Duarte and Diogo L. Lourenço and Francesca Miozzi and Maëlis Arnould and Nicolas Coltice and Stephanie L. Olson},
howpublished = {arXiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2609.16224},
eprint = {2609.16224},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.16224},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - What the Solar System Can Teach Us About Rocky Exoplanets
AU - Paul K. Byrne
AU - Claire Marie Guimond
AU - Peter A. Cawood
AU - Michael J. Way
AU - Doris Breuer
AU - Tilman Spohn
AU - João C. Duarte
AU - Diogo L. Lourenço
AU - Francesca Miozzi
AU - Maëlis Arnould
AU - Nicolas Coltice
AU - Stephanie L. Olson
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/14
PB - arXiv
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2609.16224
UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.16224
AB - The number of rocky extrasolar planets being discovered continues to increase, but so too does the apparent diversity of such worlds. As we work to understand the likely bulk properties and thermal, geological, and climatological attributes we might expect of rocky exoplanets, we can look to the Solar System for guidance. Here, we review the interior, surface, and atmospheric characteristics of modern Earth, and discuss how our homeworld has changed through Solar System history. We then visit in turn Venus, Mars, Mercury and Earth's Moon, and Io, noting how these terrestrial planets are alike, how they are different, and how they have evolved through time. Finally, we consider some examples of the types of rocky worlds known or suspected to exist without direct Solar System counterparts --- but we argue that even then, for all the variety we might expect, they are still variations on a common theme. Perhaps the most important lesson the Solar System can teach us is that terrestrial bodies change through time, sometimes dramatically, and that rocky worlds of similar size and mass can have vastly different planetary outcomes.
ER -