The solar system's dynamical state can be explained by an orbital instability among the giant
planets. A recent model has proposed that the giant planet instability happened during …

Metals observed in the atmospheres of white dwarfs suggest that many have recently
accreted planetary bodies. In some cases, the compositions observed suggest the accretion …

Planets grow in rotating disks of dust and gas around forming stars, some of which can
subsequently collide in giant impacts after the gas component is removed from the disk …

The Earth appears non-chondritic in its abundances of refractory lithophile elements, posing
a significant problem for our understanding of its formation and evolution. It has been …

We present numerical simulations of terrestrial planet formation that examine the growth
continuously from planetesimals to planets in the inner Solar System. Previous studies show …

Collisions that induce melting and vaporization can have a substantial effect on the thermal
and geochemical evolution of planets. However, the thermodynamics of major minerals are …

The classical scenario of terrestrial planet formation is characterized by a phase of giant
impacts among Moon-to-Mars mass planetary embryos. While the classic model and its …

Geochemical studies of planetary accretion and evolution have invoked various degrees of
collisional erosion to explain differences in bulk composition between planets and …

The MESSENGER mission sought to discover what physical processes determined
Mercury's high metal to silicate ratio. Instead, the mission has discovered multiple …

Collisions between large, similar-sized bodies are believed to shape the final characteristics
and composition of terrestrial planets. Their inventories of volatiles such as water are either …