Related papers: Internal structure of Pluto and Charon with an iro…

The Fe-O system is fundamental to understanding the composition and properties of the Earth's core. Recent studies have suggested the possible existence of stable, iron-rich FenO compounds at around 215 GPa. Here, we performed…

This brief review will discuss the current knowledge on the origin and evolution of the nitrogen atmospheres of the icy bodies in the solar system, particularly of Titan, Triton and Pluto. An important tool to analyse and understand the…

The Moon is traditionally thought to have coalesced from the debris ejected by a giant impact onto the early Earth. However, such models struggle to explain the similar isotopic compositions of Earth and lunar rocks at the same time as the…

There has been a long debate on the stable phase of iron under the Earth's inner core conditions. Because of the solid-liquid coexistence at the inner core boundary, the thermodynamic stability of solid phases directly relates to their…

The latest finding by Hester et al. supports the view of ". . . iron cores of the inner planets, iron meteorites, and the core of the sun as likely condensation products from the supernova core." [Science 195, 209 (14 January 1977)]

Interior to the gaseous envelopes of Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, there are high-density cores with masses larger than 10 Earth masses. According to the conventional sequential accretion hypothesis, such massive cores are needed for the…

We study the relation between the mean effective surface temperature T_s and the internal temperature T_b for magnetic neutron stars, assuming that the magnetic field near the surface has a presumably small-scale structure. The…

Giant planets acquire gas, ices and rocks during the early formation stages of planetary systems and thus inform us on the formation process itself. Proceeding from inside out, examining the connections between the deep interiors and the…

Pluto possesses a thin atmosphere primarily composed of N2, with minor constituents including CO and CH4. Photochemical processes generate distinct haze layers as observed by the New Horizons spacecraft. However, the mechanisms governing…

Since its discovery in 1930, Pluto's mass has been a value that has repeatedly been calculated. Additionally, the search for Planet X prior to Pluto's discovery results in mass calculations that date back several decades earlier. Over its…

In protoplanetary disks, dust grains rich in metallic iron can attract each other magnetically. If they are magnetized to values near saturation, the magnetically induced collision speeds are high enough to knock off the non-magnetized,…

The intriguing circumpolar cyclone pattern at Jupiter's poles raises fundamental questions about how these systems are organized vertically and, further, how the planet's internal heat shapes and sustains them in the absence of solar…

We examine to what extent the inferred surface temperature of magnetars in quiescence can constrain the presence of a superfluid in the neutron star core and the role of magnetic field decay in the core. By performing detailed simulations…

Earth's inner core exhibits an unusually high Poisson's ratio and noticeable elastic anisotropy. The mechanisms responsible for these features are critical for understanding the evolution of the Earth but remain unclear. This study…

Hydrogen-helium mixtures at conditions of Jupiter's interior are studied with first-principles computer simulations. The resulting equation of state (EOS) implies that Jupiter possesses a central core of 14-18 Earth masses of heavier…

NASA's New Horizons spacecraft discovered fields of sub-parallel sets of steep ridges situated in the high-altitude, low-latitude regions in Pluto's encounter hemisphere called 'bladed terrain'. Thought to be formed due to sublimational…

Almost all the planets of our solar system have moons. Each planetary system has however unique characteristics. The Martian system has not one single big moon like the Earth, not tens of moons of various sizes like for the giant planets,…

The proposed multi-impact model explains the formation of the Moon, Charon, and binary asteroids without invoking catastrophic cosmic events. The main elements of the new model are as follows: a. A primordial, low-mass proto-satellite disk…

We consider the formation of satellites around the Pluto-Charon binary. An early collision between the two partners likely produced the binary and a narrow ring of debris, out of which arose the moons Styx, Nix, Kerberos and Hydra. How the…

Updated formation and structure models of Jupiter predict a metal-poor envelope. This is at odds with the two to three times solar metallicity measured by the Galileo probe. Additionally, Juno data imply that water and ammonia are enriched.…