Related papers: The curious case of Mars formation
The chemical composition of stars that have orbiting planets provides important clues about the frequency, architecture, and composition of exoplanet systems. We explore the possibility that stars from different galactic populations that…
Direct observations of gaseous exoplanets reveals that their gas envelope is commonly enriched in C/O ratio compared to that of the host star. This has been explained by considering that the gas phase of the disc could be inhomogeneous,…
The study of our Solar System -- its formation, evolution, and long-term stability -- has been ongoing for centuries and is now a standard part of scientific education. While the formation of other Solar-like exoplanetary systems is…
Modeling the interior of a planet is difficult because the small number of measured parameters is insufficient to constrain the many variables involved in describing the interior structure and composition. One solution is to invoke…
Despite its importance to questions of lunar origin, the chemical composition of the Moon is not precisely known. In recent years, however, the isotopic composition of lunar samples has been determined to high precision and found to be…
One of the most challenging problems we face in our understanding of planet formation is how Jupiter and Saturn could have formed before the the solar nebula dispersed. The most popular model of giant planet formation is the so-called 'core…
In the last few years, the so-called "Nice model" has got a significant importance in the study of the formation and evolution of the solar system. According to this model, the initial orbital configuration of the giant planets was much…
We investigate the possibility that the Moon's formation impact was triggered by an early dynamical instability of the giant planets. We consider the well-studied "jumping Jupiter" hypothesis for the solar system's instability, where…
Earth and Titan are two planetary bodies formed far from each other. Nevertheless the chemical composition of their atmospheres exhibits common indications of being produced by the accretion, plus ulterior in-situ processing of cometary…
Exposed scarps images and ice-penetrating radar measurements in the North Polar Layered Deposits (NPLD) of Mars show alternating layers that provide an archive of past climate oscillations, that are thought to be linked to orbital…
It is likely that multiple bodies with masses between those of Mars and Earth ("planetary embryos") formed in the outer planetesimal disk of the solar system. Some of these were likely scattered by the giant planets into orbits with…
Volatile compositions of asteroids provide information on the Solar System history and the origins of Earth's volatiles. Visible to near-infrared observations at wavelengths of $<2.5\ {\rm \mu m}$ have suggested a genetic link between outer…
Chondritic components such as chondrules and matrix are the key time capsules that can help us understand the evolution and dynamics of the protoplanetary disk from which the Solar System originated. Knowledge of where and how these…
Our earlier laboratory measurements showed that low-velocity sand impacts release fine <5 {\mu}m dust from a Martian simulant soil. This dust will become airborne in the Martian atmosphere. Here, we extend this study by measuring…
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…
Seismic anisotropy, arising from the crystallographic or lattice-preferred orientation of anisotropic minerals or the shape-preferred orientation of melts or cracks, can establish a critical link between Mars's past evolution and its…
The bulk chemical compositions of planets are uncertain, even for major elements such as Mg and Si. This is due to the fact that the samples available for study all originate from relatively shallow depths. Comparison of the stable isotope…
The giant impact phase of terrestrial planet formation establishes connections between super-Earths' orbital properties (semimajor axis spacings, eccentricities, mutual inclinations) and interior compositions (the presence or absence of…
Based on radial velocity measurements it has been found recently that the two giant planets detected around the star HD 73526 are in 2:1 resonance. However, as our numerical integration shows, the derived orbital data for this system result…
As we continue to discover terrestrial exoplanets, many with orbital and planetary characteristics drastically different from anything encountered in our solar system, we are likely to encounter 'exotic' atmospheric transport processes. As…