Spaceflight Insider
Laurel Kornfeld
May 11th, 2021
An artist’s rendering of 10 hot Jupiters, exoplanets physically similar to Jupiter that orbit very close to their parent star, studied by Dr. David Sing of the Johns Hopkins University Center for Astrophysical Sciences. Credit: NASA, ESA, and D. Sing
The various methods used over the last 25 years to discover exoplanets and the science of categorizing the many types of exoplanets that have been found was the focus of an April 19 workshop for science writers sponsored by the
Space Telescope Science Institute (
STScI virtual
symposium centering on the formation, structure, and evolution of the more than 4,000 exoplanets discovered to date. Speakers included Dr. Jessie Christiansen of
A new theory that may explain why the inner solar system is so different to the outer regions runs counter to the prevailing wisdom.
Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars in the inner solar system are relatively small, dry planets, unlike Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune in the outer regions, planets that contain much greater quantities of volatile elements.
“In the last few years, we’ve also discovered another major difference between the two parts of the solar system,” says Maria Schönbächler, professor at the Institute of Geochemistry and Petrology at ETH Zurich. “Meteorites have a different ‘fingerprint’ depending on whether they originated in the inner or the outer solar system.” Where they originate determines the meteorites’ isotope content. Isotopes are distinct atoms of a given element, which all share the same number of protons in their nuclei but vary in the number of neutrons.
Separate formation waves explain differences in inner and outer solar systems
Using computer simulations, researchers found that the two solar systems formed in two separate waves that explain why terrestrial planets are small and rocky compared to the ice and gas giants of the outer system. All Rights Reserved. Copyright Mark A. Garlick
An international research team including experts based in Zurich have suggested a new theory for planet formation and how differences in the chemical composition of planets and meteorites came about.
This content was published on January 23, 2021 - 15:41
January 23, 2021 - 15:41
ethz/gw
Planets of the inner solar system – Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars – are small, dry and rocky, unlike Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune in the outer system, which are larger and hold more water and volatile elements.
Two-step formation explains our solar system s dichotomy of planets
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Inner terrestrial protoplanets accrete early, and inherit a substantial amount of radioactive 26Al which researchers say explains the difference between smaller, dryer inner solar system planets and larger, wetter outer ones. Photo by Mark A Garlick
Jan. 21 (UPI) The solar system features a unique dichotomy of planets the inner solar system features smaller, drier bodies, while the planets found in the outer solar system are larger and wetter.
According to a study published Thursday in the journal Science, this divide is best explained by a two-step formation process.
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IMAGE: The inner terrestrial protoplanets accrete early, inherit a substantial amount of radioactive 26Al, and hence melt, form iron cores, and degas their primordial volatile abundances rapidly. The outer Solar System. view more
Credit: Mark A Garlick/markgarlick.com
An international team of researchers from the University of Oxford, LMU Munich, ETH Zurich, BGI Bayreuth, and the University of Zurich discovered that a two-step formation process of the early Solar System can explain the chronology and split in volatile and isotope content of the inner and outer Solar System.
Their findings will be published in
Science (Friday 22 January 2021; under embargo until 2pm US Eastern Time Thursday 21 January 2021).