Monday, March 29, 2021 at 12:40

https://cuboulder.zoom.us/j/96981439846

Simon Portegies Zwart, Leiden Observatory

"The Origin and Evolution of the Oort Cloud"

Abstract:

Jan Hendrik Oort hypothesized, based on a spike in the reciprocal orbital separation, the existence of a distant cloud of cometary objects that orbit the Sun. The Oort cloud is the source of long- period comets, but it is not observed directly, and its origin remains theoretical. Theories on its origin postulate a sequence of events that are tested individually but never as a consistent chronology.

I will discuss the historic literature and present a chronology on the formation and early evolution of the Oort cloud. The formation process is illustrated with simulations that show the sequence of events leading to the formation process in subsequent amalgamated steps. These simulations start with the Solar system being born with planets and asteroids in a stellar cluster orbiting the Galactic center. Upon ejection from its birth environment, we continue to follow the Solar system's evolution while it sojourns the Galaxy as an isolated planetary system. We demonstrate how the Oort cloud can only forms in this later phase.

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