485 citations · 2.4k across the 29 of their papers we have counts for
31 papers
Paleo-heat flux estimates across Enceladus derived from flexural response of the ice shell
Chelsea Eakins, Francis Nimmo, Paul Schenk
Saturn's moon Enceladus has active plumes suggestive of locally high heat fluxes at present, and the present-day heating is reasonably well characterized. However, the moon's therm…
True Polar Wander of Lava Worlds
Wanying Kang, Francis Nimmo, Feng Ding
As one of the most detectable types of terrestrial planets, lava worlds are highly prioritized targets for exoplanet atmosphere characterization since their atmospheres may reveal…
Non-synchronous rotation on Europa driven by ocean currents
Yosef Ashkenazy, Eli Tziperman, Francis Nimmo
It has been suggested that the ice shell of Jupiter's moon Europa may drift non-synchronously due to tidal torques. Here we argue that torques applied by the underlying ocean are a…
The thermal-orbital evolution of the Earth-Moon system with a subsurface magma ocean and fossil figure
Brynna G. Downey, Francis Nimmo, Isamu Matsuyama
Various theories have been proposed to explain the Moon's current inclined orbit. We test the viability of these theories by reconstructing the thermal-orbital history of the Moon.…
A mushy source for the geysers of Enceladus
Colin R. Meyer, Jacob J. Buffo, Francis Nimmo +5
Enceladus is a primary target for astrobiology due to the plume ejecta measured by the Cassini spacecraft and the inferred subsurface ocean sustained by tidal heating. S…
Large-scale cryovolcanic resurfacing on Pluto
Kelsi N. Singer, Oliver L. White, Bernard Schmitt +22
The New Horizons spacecraft returned images and compositional data showing that terrains on Pluto span a variety of ages, ranging from relatively ancient, heavily cratered areas to…
An Investigation of Libration Heating and the Thermal State of Enceladus's Ice Shell
Wencheng D. Shao, Francis Nimmo
Tidal dissipation is thought to be responsible for the observed high heat loss on Enceladus. Forced librations can enhance tidal dissipation in the ice shell, but how such libratio…
Was Venus Ever Habitable? Constraints from a Coupled Interior-Atmosphere-Redox Evolution Model
Joshua Krissansen-Totton, Jonathan J. Fortney, Francis Nimmo
Venus's past climate evolution is uncertain. General circulation model simulations permit a habitable climate as late as ~0.7 Ga, and there is suggestive-albeit inconclusive-eviden…
Nucleosynthetic Pt isotope anomalies and the Hf-W chronology of core formation in inner and outer solar system planetesimals
Fridolin Spitzer, Christoph Burkhardt, Francis Nimmo +1
The 182Hf-182W chronology of iron meteorites provides crucial information on the timescales of accretion and differentiation of some of the oldest planetesimals of the Solar System…
Oxygen False Positives on Habitable Zone Planets Around Sun-Like Stars
Joshua Krissansen-Totton, Jonathan J. Fortney, Francis Nimmo +1
Oxygen is a promising exoplanet biosignature due to the evolutionary advantage conferred by harnessing starlight for photosynthesis, and the apparent low likelihood of maintaining…
Persephone: A Pluto-System Orbiter and Kuiper Belt Explorer
Carly Howett, Stuart Robbins, Bryan J. Holler +40
Persephone is a NASA concept mission study that addresses key questions raised by New Horizons' encounters with Kuiper Belt objects (KBOs), with arguably the most important being "…
Radiogenic Heating and its Influence on Rocky Planet Dynamos and Habitability
Francis Nimmo, Joel Primack, Sandra M. Faber +2
The thermal evolution of rocky planets on geological timescales (Gyr) depends on the heat input from the long-lived radiogenic elements potassium, thorium, and uranium. Concentrati…
Inclination damping on Callisto
Brynna G. Downey, Francis Nimmo, Isamu Matsuyama
Callisto is thought to possess a subsurface ocean, which will dissipate energy due to obliquity tides. This dissipation should have damped any primordial inclination within 1 Gyr -…
A Recipe for Geophysical Exploration of Enceladus
Anton I. Ermakov, Ryan S. Park, Javier Roa +13
Orbital geophysical investigations of Enceladus are critical to understanding its energy balance. We identified key science questions for the geophysical exploration of Enceladus,…
Scaling laws for the geometry of an impact-induced magma ocean
Miki Nakajima, Gregor J. Golabek, Kai Wünnemann +6
Here, we develop scaling laws for (1) the distribution of impact-induced heat within the mantle and (2) shape of the impact-induced melt based on more than 100 smoothed particle hy…
Constraints on terrestrial planet formation timescales and equilibration processes in the Grand Tack scenario from Hf-W isotopic evolution
Nicholas G. Zube, Francis Nimmo, Rebecca Fischer +1
We examine 141 N-body simulations of terrestrial planet late-stage accretion that use the Grand Tack scenario, coupling the collisional results with a hafnium-tungsten (Hf-W) isoto…
Near-equilibrium isotope fractionation during planetesimal evaporation
E. D. Young, A. Shahar, F. Nimmo +4
Silicon and Mg in differentiated rocky bodies exhibit heavy isotope enrichments that have been attributed to evaporation of partially or entirely molten planetesimals. We evaluate…
Reorientation of Sputnik Planitia implies a Subsurface Ocean on Pluto
F. Nimmo, D. P. Hamilton, W. B. McKinnon P. M. Schenk +60
The deep nitrogen-covered Sputnik Planitia (SP; informal name) basin on Pluto is located very close to the longitude of Pluto's tidal axis[1] and may be an impact feature [2], by a…
Convection in a volatile nitrogen-ice-rich layer drives Pluto's geological vigor
William B. McKinnon, Francis Nimmo, Teresa Wong +61
The vast, deep, volatile-ice-filled basin informally named Sputnik Planum is central to Pluto's geological activity[1,2]. Composed of molecular nitrogen, methane, and carbon monoxi…
Formation of Charon's Red Poles From Seasonally Cold-Trapped Volatiles
W. M. Grundy, D. P. Cruikshank, G. R. Gladstone +38
A unique feature of Pluto's large satellite Charon is its dark red northern polar cap. Similar colours on Pluto's surface have been attributed to organic macromolecules produced by…
Ocean tidal heating in icy satellites with solid shells
Isamu Matsuyama, Mikael Beuthe, Hamish C. F. C. Hay +2
As a long-term energy source, tidal heating in subsurface oceans of icy satellites can influence their thermal, rotational, and orbital evolution, and the sustainability of oceans.…
Modeling glacial flow on and onto Pluto's Sputnik Planitia
O. M. Umurhan, A. D. Howard, J. M. Moore +12
Observations of Pluto's surface made by the New Horizons spacecraft indicates present-day nitrogen ice glaciation in and around the basin known as Sputnik Planum. Motivated by thes…
The Geology of Pluto and Charon Through the Eyes of New Horizons
Jeffrey M. Moore, William B. McKinnon, John R. Spencer +38
NASA's New Horizons spacecraft has revealed the complex geology of Pluto and Charon. Pluto's encounter hemisphere shows ongoing surface geological activity centered on a vast basin…
The Small Satellites of Pluto as Observed by New Horizons
H. A. Weaver, M. W. Buie, B. J. Buratti +48
The New Horizons mission has provided resolved measurements of Pluto's moons Styx, Nix, Kerberos, and Hydra. All four are small, with equivalent spherical diameters of 40…