Weekly Research Colloquia

The Physics Department hosts weekly colloquia every Thursday @ 3:05pm via Zoom featuring experts on a wide variety of physics and astrophysics topics. Join us for research!

Cal State LA Physics & Astronomy Department. Juliette Becker. Caltech. Planet Formation from a Dynamical Perspective: Using Theoretical Methods to Constrain and Understand the Outcomes of Planet Formation. Recent observational advances have allowed the discovery of thousands of exoplanets and an initial characterization of their orbital and physical parameters. As this population has grown, it is increasingly apparent that existing models of planet formation are incomplete. The Kepler/K2/TESS data have presented counterexamples to prevailing theories, including theories of how hot Jupiters form and how planets obtain their orbital inclinations. Similar developments have occurred in the solar system, where recent discoveries of the most distant solar system objects have required new explanations. In this talk, I will present my work towards integrating the theory and the observational data. Resolving these conflicts requires a deep understanding of the current dynamical state and histories of benchmark systems beyond what the data alone can provide, and I explain how dynamics (analytic models and numerical simulations) can help give needed constraints. I will describe several recent exciting discoveries and my subsequent dynamical analyses, which have provided boundary conditions for our understanding of planet formation. Zoom link: https://calstatela.zoom.us/j/85450237713?pwd=SEliM3V6UU9IK200em1tQ3hudElMZz09 Meeting ID: 854 5023 7713 Passcode: 210225 One tap mobile: +16699006833,,85450237713# Spring 2021 colloquium schedule: https://www.calstatela.edu/dept/physics/colloquia-and-events