Related papers: Explaining the low luminosity of Uranus: A self-co…
We explore the possibility that large-scale convection be inhibited over some regions of giant planet interiors, as a consequence of a gradient of composition inherited either from their formation history or from particular events like…
Hydrogen is considered a major light element in Earth's core, yet the thermodynamics of its superionic phase and its distribution in the inner core remain unclear. Here, we compute ab initio Gibbs free energies for liquid and superionic hcp…
While Jupiter's massive gas envelope consists mainly of hydrogen and helium, the key to understanding Jupiter's formation and evolution lies in the distribution of the remaining (heavy) elements. Before the Juno mission, the lack of…
Modeling the formation of the ice giants Uranus and Neptune is a long-lasting problem in planetary science. Due to gas-drag, collisional damping, and resonant shepherding, the planetary embryos repel the planetesimals away from their reach…
The creation of loosely bound objects in heavy ion collisions, e.g. light clusters, near the phase transition temperature $\left(T_{\rm ch} \approx 155 \, \rm{MeV} \right)$ has been a puzzling observation that seems to be at odds with Big…
In an atmosphere, a cloud condensation region is characterized by a strong vertical gradient in the abundance of the related condensing species. On Earth, the ensuing gradient of mean molecular weight has relatively few dynamical…
Interior models of giant planets traditionally assume that at a given radius (i.e. pressure) the density should be larger than or equal to the one corresponding to a homogeneous, adiabatic stratification throughout the planet (referred to…
Venus exhibits strong and changing contrasts at ultraviolet wavelengths apparently related to the clouds and the dynamics in the cloud layer, but to date their origin continues to be unknown. We investigate the nature of the UV contrasts…
Uranus and Neptune have intrinsic magnetic fields generated via convection in a molten H2O layer, where the field strength is determined by its electrical conductivity (EC) along with convection size and velocity. Previous shock experiments…
A proposed setting for thermonuclear (Type Ia) supernovae is a white dwarf that has gained mass from a companion to the point of carbon ignition in the core. In the early stages of carbon burning, called the simmering phase, energy released…
Both Uranus and Neptune are thought to have strong zonal winds with velocities of several hundred meters per second. These wind velocities, however, assume solid-body rotation periods based on Voyager 2 measurements of periodic variations…
The temperature in most parts of a protoplanetary disk is determined by irradiation from the central star. Numerical experiments of Watanabe \& Lin (2008) suggested that such disks, also called `passive disks', suffer from a thermal…
The planets Uranus and Neptune with small apparent diameters are primary calibration standards. We investigate their variability at ~90 GHz using archived data taken at the IRAM 30m telescope during the 20 years period 1985 to 2005. We…
Earth possesses a persistent, internally-generated magnetic field, whereas no trace of a dynamo has been detected on Venus, at present or in the past, although a high surface temperature and recent resurfacing events may have removed…
We perform a suite of smoothed particle hydrodynamics simulations to investigate in detail the results of a giant impact on the young Uranus. We study the internal structure, rotation rate, and atmospheric retention of the post-impact…
Radiative-conductive systems are intrinsically nonlinear due to the quartic temperature dependence of thermal radiation. Under fixed total heating power, convexity arguments imply that nonuniform temperature distributions radiate more…
Dynamical friction implies a consistency check on any system where dark matter particles are hypothesised to explain orbital dynamics requiring more mass under Newtonian gravity than is directly detectable. Introducing the assumption of a…
We discuss the effect of chemical separation as matter freezes at the base of the ocean of an accreting neutron star, and the subsequent enrichment of the ocean in light elements and inward transport of heat through convective mixing. We…
A comprehensive exploration of Uranus and Neptune is essential to understand the formation and evolution of the giant planets, in particular, solar system, in general, and, by extension, a vast population of exoplanets. Though core…
Stellar evolution models predict that the solar luminosity was lower in the past, typically 20-25 % lower during the Archean (3.8-2.5 Ga). Despite the fainter Sun, there is strong evidence for the presence of liquid water on Earth's surface…