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Planet destruction and the shaping of planetary nebulae
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 08 August 2017
Abstract
The shaping of PNe as a result of an interaction with a planet is a hypothesis that has been suggested for nearly two decades. However, exploring the idea observationally is challenging due to the lack of capabilities needed to detect any evidence of such a scenario. Nonetheless, we propose that the hypothesis can be indirectly tested via a combination of exoplanet formation and evolution theories, the star and planet formation histories of the galaxy and the tidal evolution of star-planet systems. We present a calculation of the fraction of planetary nebulae in the galaxy today which have undergone an interaction with a planet, concluding that a significant number of visible planetary nebulae may have been shaped by a planet.
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- Copyright © International Astronomical Union 2017
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