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| Paper: |
What Do Multiple Planet Systems Teach Us about Planet Formation? |
| Volume: |
352, New Horizons in Astronomy: Frank N. Bash Symposium 2005 |
| Page: |
15 |
| Authors: |
Ford, E.B. |
| Abstract: |
For centuries, our knowledge of planetary systems and ideas about planet formation were based on a single example, our solar system. During the last thirteen years, the discovery of ≅170 planetary systems has ushered in a new era for astronomy. I review the surprising properties of extrasolar planetary systems and discuss how they are reshaping theories of planet formation. I focus on how multiple planet systems constrain the mechanisms proposed to explain the large eccentricities typical of extrasolar planets. I suggest that strong planetplanet scattering is common and most planetary systems underwent a phase of large eccentricities. I propose that a planetary system's final eccentricities may be strongly influenced by how much mass remains in a planetesimal disk after the last strong planet-planet scattering event.
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