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One of the key goals of the Rosetta mission was to understand how, where and when comets formed in our solar system. There are two major hypotheses for the origin of comets, both pre-Rosetta: (1) hierarchical accretion of dust and ice grains in the Solar Nebula and (2) the growth of pebbles, which are then brought together by streaming instabilities in the Solar Nebula to form larger bodies. Rosetta provided a wealth of new information on comet nuclei and confirmed many past ideas on comets, e.g., high volatile content, lack of aqueous alteration of grains, and the low bulk density of the nucleus. Rosetta also provided new data on the nature of cometary activity, the active geology on the nucleus surface and the interior structure and bulk density of the nucleus. Supporters of the above-mentioned origin hypotheses each find confirmation of their ideas in the Rosetta results. But the question of which hypothesis is preferred, or if there are other, better hypotheses that could be invoked, could not be answered. Theoretical studies suggest that comet nuclei were collisionally processed in the Primordial Disk though it is not clear that the nuclei we see today display the effects of that process. Both theoretical and observational studies suggest that the major end-states for cometary nuclei are dynamical ejection, random disruption and disintegration, and/or evolution of nuclei to inactive, asteroidal-appearing objects. Rosetta has provided us with many new insights that will help to guide future cometary missions, observations, experiments and theoretical investigations that will lead to answers to the fundamental questions with regard to cometary origin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Primitive objects like comets hold important information on the material that formed our solar system. Several comets have been visited by spacecraft and many more have been observed through Earth- and space-based telescopes. Still our understanding remains limited. Molecular abundances in comets have been shown to be similar to interstellar ices and thus indicate that common processes and conditions were involved in their formation. The samples returned by the Stardust mission to comet Wild 2 showed that the bulk refractory material was processed by high temperatures in the vicinity of the early sun. The recent Rosetta mission acquired a wealth of new data on the composition of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (hereafter 67P/C-G) and complemented earlier observations of other comets. The isotopic, elemental, and molecular abundances of the volatile, semi-volatile, and refractory phases brought many new insights into the origin and processing of the incorporated material. The emerging picture after Rosetta is that at least part of the volatile material was formed before the solar system and that cometary nuclei agglomerated over a wide range of heliocentric distances, different from where they are found today. Deviations from bulk solar system abundances indicate that the material was not fully homogenized at the location of comet formation, despite the radial mixing implied by the Stardust results. Post-formation evolution of the material might play an important role, which further complicates the picture. This paper discusses these major findings of the Rosetta mission with respect to the origin of the material and puts them in the context of what we know from other comets and solar system objects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reviews habitability conditions for a terrestrial planet from the point of view of geosciences. It addresses how interactions between the interior of a planet or a moon and its atmosphere and surface (including hydrosphere and biosphere) can affect habitability of the celestial body. It does not consider in detail the role of the central star but focusses more on surface conditions capable of sustaining life. We deal with fundamental issues of planetary habitability, i.e. the environmental conditions capable of sustaining life, and the above-mentioned interactions can affect the habitability of the celestial body. We address some hotly debated questions including: How do core and mantle affect the evolution and habitability of planets? What are the consequences of mantle overturn on the evolution of the interior and atmosphere? What is the role of the global carbon and water cycles? What influence do comet and asteroid impacts exert on the evolution of the planet? How does life interact with the evolution of the Earth's geosphere and atmosphere? How can knowledge of the solar system geophysics and habitability be applied to exoplanets? In addition, we address the identification of preserved life tracers in the context of the interaction of life with planetary evolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]