The web of three-planet resonances in the outer Solar System. II. A source of orbital instability for Uranus and Neptune

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Scientific paper

The motion of the giant planets from Jupiter to Neptune is chaotic with Lyapunov time of approximately 10 Myr. A recent theory explains the presence of this chaos with three-planet mean-motion resonances, i.e. resonances among the orbital periods of at least three planets. We find that the distribution of these resonances with respect to the semi-major axes of all the planets is compatible with orbital instability. In particular, they overlap in a region of 10-3 AU with respect to the variation of the semi-major axes of Uranus and Neptune. Fictitious planetary systems with initial conditions in this region can undergo systematic variations of semi-major axes. The true Solar System is marginally in this region, and Uranus and Neptune undergo very slow systematic variations of semi-major axes with speed of order 10-4 AU/Gyr.

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