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arxiv: 1809.01157 · v1 · pith:4GYGIFXKnew · submitted 2018-09-04 · 🌌 astro-ph.EP · astro-ph.SR

Effects of non-Kozai mutual inclinations on two-planet system stability through all phases of stellar evolution

classification 🌌 astro-ph.EP astro-ph.SR
keywords stabilityinclinationsmutualnon-kozaistellarsystemsassumptiondwarf
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Previous full-lifetime simulations of single-star multi-planet systems across all phases of stellar evolution have predominately assumed coplanar or nearly-coplanar orbits. Here we assess the consequences of this assumption by removing it and exploring the effect of giant branch mass loss on the stability of two-planet systems with small to moderate non-Kozai (<40 degrees) relative inclinations. We run nearly 10^4 simulations over 14 Gyr for F-star, A-star and B-star planet hosts, incorporating main sequence stellar masses of 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, 3.0 and 5.0 solar masses, and initial planetary semimajor axis ratios that straddle their three-dimensional Hill stability limits. We find that the near-coplanar assumption can approximate well the stability frequencies and critical separations found for higher inclinations, except around strong mean-motion commensurabilities. Late instabilities -- after the star has become a white dwarf -- occur throughout the explored mutual inclination range. Consequently, non-Kozai mutual inclination should not be used as a predictive orbital proxy for determining which white dwarf multi-planet systems discovered by Gaia should represent high-priority follow-up targets for the detection of metal pollution and planetary debris discs.

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