Title: Planetesimal dynamics in the presence of a massive companion
Carol Kwok (University of Tokyo, NAOJ)
abstract:
The standard models of planet formation explain well how planets form in axisymmetric, unperturbed disks in single star systems. However, it is possible that giant planets could have already formed before the runaway growth of planetary embryos. In other words, the early evolution of planetesimals can be affected by strong perturbations from the massive planets in the system, and thus deviate from the standard scenario. We aim to investigate the dynamics of planetesimals, including their orbital characteristics and evolution, in a system with the presence of a massive perturber to find out its impact on the formation of terrestrial planets or the core of giant planets. Currently, we are using N-body simulations to calculate the orbits of planetesimals under the influence of a planet with the mass of Jupiter and gas drag. In our next step, we will include size distribution as well as the self-gravity of planetesimals in our simulations.
host contact: Masato Shirasaki