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Dynamical simulations of the HR8799 planetary system

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 August 2010

J. Marshall ,
J. Horner  and
A. Carter
J. Marshall*
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Astronomy, The Open University, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes MK7 6AA, UK Departamento de Física Teoríca, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Cantoblanco, 28049 Madrid, Spain
J. Horner
Affiliation:
Department of Physics, Science Laboratories, University of Durham, South Road, Durham DH1 3LE, UK
A. Carter
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Astronomy, The Open University, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes MK7 6AA, UK
*
e-mail: jonathan.marshall@uam.es
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Abstract

HR8799 is a young (20–160 Myr) A-dwarf main sequence star with a debris disc detected by IRAS (InfraRed Astronomical Satellite). In 2008, it was one of two stars around which exoplanets were directly imaged for the first time. The presence of three Jupiter-mass planets around HR8799 provoked much interest in modelling the dynamical stability of the system. Initial simulations indicated that the observed planetary architecture was unstable on timescales much shorter than the lifetime of the star (~105 yr). Subsequent models suggested that the system could be stable if the planets were locked in a 1:2:4 mutual mean motion resonance (MMR). In this work, we have examined the influence of varying orbital eccentricity and the semi-major axis on the stability of the three-planet system, through dynamical simulations using the MERCURY n-body integrator. We find that, in agreement with previous work on this system, the 1:2:4 MMR is the most stable planetary configuration, and that the system stability is dominated by the interaction between the inner pair of planets. In contrast to previous results, we find that with small eccentricities, the three-planet system can be stable for timescales comparable to the system lifetime and, potentially, much longer.

Keywords

dynamical evolution and stability of planets and satellitesindividual starsHR8799.
Type
Research Article
Information
International Journal of Astrobiology , Volume 9 , Special Issue 4: Special issue Papers from the Astrobiology Society of Britain Conference 2010 , October 2010 , pp. 259 - 264
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2010

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