On the origin of Jupiter's fuzzy core: constraints from N-body, impact and evolution simulations

Abstract

It has been suggested that Jupiter's fuzzy core could be a result of a giant impact. Here, we investigate the expected impact conditions from N-body simulations. We then use state-of-the-art SPH simulations to investigate the results of impacts with different conditions including various impactor masses and composition, different formation stages in Jupiter's growth, and different resolutions. We next simulate the long-term thermal evolution of Jupiter post-impact. We find that 3D N-body simulations predict rather oblique impacts, and that head-on collisions are rare. Moreover, our results show that even under a head-on collision, Jupiter's fuzzy core cannot be formed. We next simulated Jupiter's thermal evolution and showed that unless post-impact temperatures are extremely low, a giant impact would not lead to an extended dilute core as inferred by interior models. We conclude that Jupiter's fuzzy core is not caused by an impact and is likely to be an outcome of its formation process.

31 pages, 17 figures, 7 tables, accepted for publication in ApJ

References in corpus (40)

• Array Programming with NumPy
• Modules for Experiments in Stellar Astrophysics (MESA)
• Modules for Experiments in Stellar Astrophysics (MESA): Pulsating Variable Stars, Rotation, Convective Boundaries, and Energy Conservation
• Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics and Magnetohydrodynamics
• Modules for Experiments in Stellar Astrophysics (MESA): Time-Dependent Convection, Energy Conservation, Automatic Differentiation, and Infrastructure
• Comparing Jupiter interior structure models to Juno gravity measurements and the role of a dilute core
• Three-dimensional simulations of multiple protoplanets embedded in a protostellar disc
• New models of Jupiter in the context of Juno and Galileo
• A new equation of state for dense hydrogen-helium mixtures
• Ab initio equations of state for hydrogen (H-REOS.3) and helium (He-REOS.3) and their implications for the interior of Brown Dwarfs
• Saturn Ring Seismology: Evidence for Stable Stratification in the Deep Interior of Saturn
• Planetary evolution with atmospheric photoevaporation I. Analytical derivation and numerical study of the evaporation valley and transition from super-Earths to sub-Neptunes
• The Formation of Jupiter's Diluted Core by a Giant Impact
• Jupiter's inhomogeneous envelope
• The Challenge of Forming a Fuzzy Core in Jupiter
• A new equation of state for dense hydrogen-helium mixtures II: taking into account hydrogen-helium interactions
• Revelations on Jupiter's Formation, Evolution and Interior: Challenges from Juno Results
• Convection and Mixing in Giant Planet Evolution
• Jupiter's interior from Juno: Equation-of-state uncertainties and dilute core extent
• Double-diffusive erosion of the core of Jupiter
• Jupiter's heavy-element enrichment expected from formation models
• Numerical aspects of Giant Impact simulations
• Theoretical vs. observational uncertainties: composition of giant exoplanets
• Giant planet formation models with a self-consistent treatment of the heavy elements
• Immediate origin of the Moon as a post-impact satellite
• Study of Jupiter's Interior: Comparison of 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 Layer Models
• Terrestrial planet formation from a ring
• Forming Iron-rich Planets with Giant Impacts
• Layer formation in a stably-stratified fluid cooled from above. Towards an analog for Jupiter and other gas giants
• Convective Mixing in Gas Giant Planets with Primordial Composition Gradients
• Investigating the Feasibility of an Impact-Induced Martian Dichotomy
• Evolution of Semi-convective Staircases in Rotating Flows: Consequences for Fuzzy Cores in Giant Planets
• The EOS/Resolution Conspiracy: Convergence in Proto-Planetary Collision Simulations
• Heavy-element Accretion by Proto-Jupiter in a Massive Planetesimal Disk, Revisited
• Mesh-free hydrodynamics in PKDGRAV3 for galaxy formation simulations
• REMIX SPH -- improving mixing in smoothed particle hydrodynamics simulations using a generalised, material-independent approach
• 3D Simulations of Semiconvection in Spheres: Turbulent Mixing and Layer Formation
• A Systematic Survey of Moon-Forming Giant Impacts. II. Rotating bodies
• The Outcome of Collisions between Gaseous Clumps formed by Disk Instability
• Metal-silicate mixing in planetesimal collisions

Cited by in corpus (4)

• The Evolution of Jupiter and Saturn as a function of the Parameter R${}_{\rho }$
• Further constraints on Jupiter's primordial structure
• An Energy Perspective of Core Erosion in Gas Giant Planets
• The possibility of a giant impact on Venus