Coupled orbital-thermal evolution of major Uranian satellites

By Dr. Attique Ur-Rehman

Date: Friday, 16th February 2018

Time: 3 pm – 4 pm

Venue: Maths Conference Room (9-147) SBASSE, Building

Abstract

We use N-body gravitational simulations to study the long-term evolution of the major Uranian satellites. In this study, we develop a coupled orbital-thermal model of Uranus and its major satellites. The orbital part models the evolution of the satellites’ orbital elements with the help of detailed equations of motion and associated perturbing terms. The thermal part models the evolution of the satellites’ interior using the heat equation. The model exchanges the feedback between the two parts during the entire simulation. The implementation of our model is based on the numerical integration of developed equations of motion and the heat equation. In this presentation, we will talk about the development and implementation of our model. We will present and discuss results of the numerical testing of our model.