Dynamical Interactions and Mass Loss within the Uranian System
The origin and evolution of planetary rings and moons remains an active area of study, particularly as they relate to the impact history and volatile inventory of the outer solar system. The Uranian system contains a complex system of rings that are coplanar with the highly inclined planetary equato...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IOP Publishing
2023-01-01
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| Series: | The Planetary Science Journal |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/PSJ/ad05ce |
| _version_ | 1797326876760342528 |
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| author | Stephen R. Kane Zhexing Li |
| author_facet | Stephen R. Kane Zhexing Li |
| author_sort | Stephen R. Kane |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The origin and evolution of planetary rings and moons remains an active area of study, particularly as they relate to the impact history and volatile inventory of the outer solar system. The Uranian system contains a complex system of rings that are coplanar with the highly inclined planetary equator relative to the orbital plane. Uranus also harbors five primary regular moons that play an important role in the distribution of material that surrounds the planet. Here we present the results of a dynamical simulation suite for the Uranian system, intended to explore the interaction between the five primary regular moons and particles within the system. We identify regions of extreme mass loss within 40 planetary radii of Uranus, including eccentricity excitation of particle orbits at resonance locations that can promote moonlet formation within the rings. We calculate a total dynamical particle mass-loss rate of 35% within 0.5 × 10 ^6 yr and 40% mass loss within 10 ^7 yr. We discuss the implications for postimpact material, including dynamical truncation of stable ring locations and/or locations of moon formation promoted by dynamical excitation of ring material. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T06:30:29Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-93a50dc8b1d44795933df64c74bf594a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2632-3338 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T06:30:29Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | The Planetary Science Journal |
| spelling | doaj.art-93a50dc8b1d44795933df64c74bf594a2024-02-03T11:56:27ZengIOP PublishingThe Planetary Science Journal2632-33382023-01-0141121610.3847/PSJ/ad05ceDynamical Interactions and Mass Loss within the Uranian SystemStephen R. Kane0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7084-0529Zhexing Li1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4860-7667Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California , Riverside, CA 92521, USA ; skane@ucr.eduDepartment of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California , Riverside, CA 92521, USA ; skane@ucr.eduThe origin and evolution of planetary rings and moons remains an active area of study, particularly as they relate to the impact history and volatile inventory of the outer solar system. The Uranian system contains a complex system of rings that are coplanar with the highly inclined planetary equator relative to the orbital plane. Uranus also harbors five primary regular moons that play an important role in the distribution of material that surrounds the planet. Here we present the results of a dynamical simulation suite for the Uranian system, intended to explore the interaction between the five primary regular moons and particles within the system. We identify regions of extreme mass loss within 40 planetary radii of Uranus, including eccentricity excitation of particle orbits at resonance locations that can promote moonlet formation within the rings. We calculate a total dynamical particle mass-loss rate of 35% within 0.5 × 10 ^6 yr and 40% mass loss within 10 ^7 yr. We discuss the implications for postimpact material, including dynamical truncation of stable ring locations and/or locations of moon formation promoted by dynamical excitation of ring material.https://doi.org/10.3847/PSJ/ad05ceUranusUranian satellitesOrbital evolutionOrbital resonancesOrbitsDynamical evolution |
| spellingShingle | Stephen R. Kane Zhexing Li Dynamical Interactions and Mass Loss within the Uranian System The Planetary Science Journal Uranus Uranian satellites Orbital evolution Orbital resonances Orbits Dynamical evolution |
| title | Dynamical Interactions and Mass Loss within the Uranian System |
| title_full | Dynamical Interactions and Mass Loss within the Uranian System |
| title_fullStr | Dynamical Interactions and Mass Loss within the Uranian System |
| title_full_unstemmed | Dynamical Interactions and Mass Loss within the Uranian System |
| title_short | Dynamical Interactions and Mass Loss within the Uranian System |
| title_sort | dynamical interactions and mass loss within the uranian system |
| topic | Uranus Uranian satellites Orbital evolution Orbital resonances Orbits Dynamical evolution |
| url | https://doi.org/10.3847/PSJ/ad05ce |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT stephenrkane dynamicalinteractionsandmasslosswithintheuraniansystem AT zhexingli dynamicalinteractionsandmasslosswithintheuraniansystem |