MIGRATION OF GAS GIANT PLANETS IN GRAVITATIONALLY UNSTABLE DISKS

Journal Article · Sat Aug 20 04:00:00 EDT 2011 · Astrophysical Journal Letters

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1088/2041-8205/737/2/L42· OSTI ID:21562461

Michael, Scott; Durisen, Richard H ^[1]

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1. Department of Astronomy, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405 (United States)

Characterization of migration in gravitationally unstable disks is necessary to understand the fate of protoplanets formed by disk instability. As part of a larger study, we are using a three-dimensional radiative hydrodynamics code to investigate how an embedded gas giant planet interacts with a gas disk that undergoes gravitational instabilities (GIs). This Letter presents results from simulations with a Jupiter-mass planet placed in orbit at 25 AU within a 0.14 M{sub sun} disk. The disk spans 5-40 AU around a 1 M{sub sun} star and is initially marginally unstable. In one simulation, the planet is inserted prior to the eruption of GIs; in another, it is inserted only after the disk has settled into a quasi-steady GI-active state, where heating by GIs roughly balances radiative cooling. When the planet is present from the beginning, its own wake stimulates growth of a particular global mode with which it strongly interacts, and the planet plunges inward 6 AU in about 10{sup 3} years. In both cases with embedded planets, there are times when the planet's radial motion is slow and varies in direction. At other times, when the planet appears to be interacting with strong spiral modes, migration both inward and outward can be relatively rapid, covering several AUs over hundreds of years. Migration in both cases appears to stall near the inner Lindblad resonance of a dominant low-order mode. Planet orbit eccentricities fluctuate rapidly between about 0.02 and 0.1 throughout the GI-active phases of the simulations.

• OSTI ID: 21562461
• Journal Information: Astrophysical Journal Letters, Journal Name: Astrophysical Journal Letters Journal Issue: 2 Vol. 737; ISSN 2041-8205
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS
FLUID MECHANICS
GRAVITATIONAL INSTABILITY
HYDRODYNAMICS
INSTABILITY
MECHANICS
MIGRATION
PLANETS
PLASMA INSTABILITY
PROTOPLANETS
SIMULATION
THREE-DIMENSIONAL CALCULATIONS