Related papers: Hydrodynamic simulations of moonlet induced propel…

The origin of Saturn's rings has been debated for decades. Measurements from Voyager and Cassini have suggested that the rings could be as young as ~100 Myr and composed of nearly pure water ice. Several scenarios have been proposed to…

We simulate the collision of precursor icy moons analogous to Dione and Rhea as a possible origin for Saturn's remarkably young rings. Such an event could have been triggered a few hundred million years ago by resonant instabilities in a…

In my thesis I present a study of the dynamics and observational characteristics of massive circumstellar disks in two dimensions ($r$, $\phi$) using two complimentary hydrodynamic codes: a `Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamic' (SPH) code and a…

Titan, Saturn's largest moon, supports a dense atmosphere, numerous bodies of liquid on its surface, and as a richly organic world is a primary focus for understanding the processes that support the development of life. In-situ exploration…

Radiative transfer is an important component of hydrodynamic simulations as it determines the thermal properties of a physical system. It is especially important in cases where heating and cooling regulate significant processes, such as in…

To explore the formation and properties of Saturn's G ring, we study the dynamics of micron-sized dust particles originating from the arc of debris near the inner edge of the ring. The dynamical evolution of particles due to various…

The origin of rings around giant planets remains elusive. Saturn's rings are massive and made of 90-95% of water ice. In contrast, the much less massive rings of Uranus and Neptune are dark and likely to have higher rock fraction. Here we…

Interferometric observations of protoplanetary disks by VLTI and ALMA have greatly improved our understanding of the detailed structure of these planetary birthplaces. These observations have revealed a variety of large-scale disk…

Whistler-mode waves are generated within and can propagate upstream of collisionless shocks. They are known to play a role in electron thermodynamics/acceleration and, under certain conditions, are markedly observed as wave trains preceding…

The Cassini mission unveiled the intense and diverse activity in Saturn's atmosphere: banded jets, waves, vortices, equatorial oscillations. To set the path towards a better understanding of those phenomena, we performed high-resolution…

Many stars host planets orbiting within a few astronomical units (AU). The occurrence rate and distributions of masses and orbits vary greatly with the host stars mass. These close planets origins are a mystery that motivates investigating…

Brilliantov et al. (PNAS, 2015) propose a model for the size distribution ~R^-3 for small particles with radius R and ~exp(-(R/Rc)^3) for large particles, where Rc=5.5 m. In 1989 Longaretti found analytically ~R^-3 for small particles and…

Normal mode seismology is a promising means of measuring rotation in gas giant interiors, and ring seismology presents a singular opportunity to do so at Saturn. We calculate Saturn's normal modes of oscillation and zonal gravity field,…

We present numerically-derived orbits and mass estimates for the inner Saturnian satellites, Atlas, Prometheus, Pandora, Janus and Epimetheus from a fit to 2580 new Cassini ISS astrometric observations spanning February 2004 to August 2013.…

The formation and orbital evolution of Saturn's inner mid-sized moons are still debated. The most puzzling aspects are 1) how the Tethys-Dione pair and the Mimas-Enceladus pair passed through their strong 3:2 mean-motion resonances during…

During the Grand Finale stage of the Cassini mission, organic-rich ring material was discovered to be flowing into Saturn's equatorial upper atmosphere at a surprisingly large rate. Through a series of photochemical models, we have examined…

Seismology allows for direct observational constraints on the interior structures of stars and planets. Recent observations of Saturn's ring system have revealed the presence of density waves within the rings excited by oscillation modes…

I report a model for the formation of Saturn's family of mid-sized icy moons to coincide with the first flypast of Rhea by the Cassini Orbiter spacecraft on 26 November 2005. It is proposed that these moons had condensed from a concentric…

Planetary rings are ubiquitous structure in our Solar System, but their formation mechanisms remain under debate. One of the proposed scenarios is the tidal disruption of a nearby passing body that enters within a planet's Roche limit,…

The Cassini Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrograph (UVIS) observed a plume of water vapor spewing out from the south polar regions of Enceladus in occultation geometry 7 times during the Cassini mission. Five of them yielded data resolved…