Publisher's Synopsis
This is an up-to-date view of the solar system's minor bodies (comets, asteroids, meteors, trans-Neptunian objects and small satellites), stressing their interrelations, and relevance to accretion processes in the early solar system. The topics cover physical aspects, as well as dynamics, and observing programs related to these bodies. The volume also contains material related to current and planned space missions to minor bodies, in particular the successful Deep Impact mission to the comet Tempel 1. The book comprises 28 articles written by specialists in the field, who gave invited talks at the IAU S229 ACM meeting held in Búzios, Brazil, in August 2005. It will be of interest to researchers and graduate students working in planetary sciences and related fields.
