Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics
Scientific paper
1998-09-24
Astron.J.117:621-628,1999
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
19 pages, 5 figures, 7 tables, accepted by the Astronomical Journal
Scientific paper
10.1086/300695
A simple question of celestial mechanics is investigated: in what regions of phase space near a binary system can planets persist for long times? The planets are taken to be test particles moving in the field of an eccentric binary system. A range of values of the binary eccentricity and mass ratio is studied, and both the case of planets orbiting close to one of the stars, and that of planets outside the binary orbiting the system's center of mass, are examined. From the results, empirical expressions are developed for both 1) the largest orbit around each of the stars, and 2) the smallest orbit around the binary system as a whole, in which test particles survive the length of the integration (10^4 binary periods). The empirical expressions developed, which are roughly linear in both the mass ratio mu and the binary eccentricity e, are determined for the range 0.0 <= e <= 0.7-0.8 and 0.1 <= mu <= 0.9 in both regions, and can be used to guide searches for planets in binary systems. After considering the case of a single low-mass planet in binary systems, the stability of a mutually-interacting system of planets orbiting one star of a binary system is examined, though in less detail.
Holman Matthew
Wiegert Paul
No associations
LandOfFree
Long-Term Stability of Planets in Binary Systems does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.
If you have personal experience with Long-Term Stability of Planets in Binary Systems, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Long-Term Stability of Planets in Binary Systems will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-708805