The planetary systems of white dwarf (WD) stars are fertile ground for insight on the properties and evolution of planetary systems in general. Interest in WD planets has grown dramatically of late, sparking collaborative efforts across diverse research areas like orbital dynamics, cosmochemistry, planetary atmospheres, and astrobiology. I will discuss recent progress in understanding the dynamical evolution of WD planetary systems and show how this provides key context for interpreting existing and future observations. First, I will focus on the short-period giant planet WD1856+534b and efforts to understand its survival and orbital migration history. I will then turn to the origins of metal pollution in WDs, describing how dynamical models hint at the typical properties of unseen, long-period planets in these systems.

Host: Jessica Libby-Roberts

Seminar held in 538 Davey or please email CEHW-SEMINAR-QUESTIONS@lists.psu.edu to attend virtually.