Planetary Systems as the Bottom Levels of Hierarchies

Senior Scientist Nathan Kaib will complete simulations modeling the evolution of planetary systems within the Alpha/Proxima Centauri triple star system as the stellar companions are perturbed by their local galactic environment. These simulations will use the galactic migration histories of Alpha Centauri analog star particles within N-body galaxy simulations to parameterize the evolution of their local galactic environments. These galactic perturbations will then be fed into planetary-scale simulations that include hypothetical planets and the stars of the Alpha/Proxima Centauri system. These simulations will be completed and their results will be published over the next 12 months.

In addition, we will use this numerical pipeline to model the formation planetary systems within the Alpha Centauri A/B binary at different assumed initial eccentricities. These formed systems will then be evolved under triple star and galactic perturbations to study how the properties and architectures of planetary systems stable since their formation differ from those that have been dynamically processed by their stellar companions. This work will also be completed and published over the next 12 months.