Binary stars can perturb planetary orbits
SEP 01, 2015
DOI: 10.1063/PT.5.029168
Ars Technica : Some exoplanetary systems consist of planets orbiting stars that have distant binary companions. According to new simulations of such systems, if a planet’s orbital precession around its star falls into resonance with the orbital period of the binary, the resulting gravitational forces could lead to drastic changes in the planet’s orbit. In particular, the planet’s orbit could become highly elliptical or be forced into a different plane from that of the other planets in the system. In extreme cases, the planet could be ejected from the system or forced to collide with another planet or with one of the stars.
© 2015 American Institute of Physics
