Engulfment of Eccentric Planets by Giant Stars: Hydrodynamics and Light Curves
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arXiv
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| Autori principali: | , , , |
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| Natura: | Preprint |
| Pubblicazione: |
2025
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| _version_ | 1866909876347731968 |
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| author | Yang, Mengqi Lai, Dong Wu, Fuyuan Zhang, Jie |
| author_facet | Yang, Mengqi Lai, Dong Wu, Fuyuan Zhang, Jie |
| contents | Recent observations suggest that planetary engulfment by a giant star may produce radiation that resembles subluminous red novae. We present three-dimensional hydrodynamical simulations of the interaction between an eccentric $5 \,M_J$ giant planet and its $1\,M_\odot$ red-giant host star. The planet's pericenter is initially $60\%$ of the stellar radius and is fully engulfed after tens of orbits. Once inside the stellar envelope, the planet generates pressure disturbances that steepen into shocks, ejecting material from the envelope. We use post-processing to calculate the light curves produced by planetary engulfment. We find that the hot stellar ejecta enhances the stellar luminosity by several orders of magnitude. A prolonged hydrogen recombination plateau appears when the ejecta cools to about $10^4\,\rm{K}$. The late-time rapid dimming of the light curve follows dust formation, which obscures the radiation. For planets with lower eccentricity, the orbital decay proceeds more slowly, although the observable properties remain similar. |
| format | Preprint |
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arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2510_25547 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Engulfment of Eccentric Planets by Giant Stars: Hydrodynamics and Light Curves Yang, Mengqi Lai, Dong Wu, Fuyuan Zhang, Jie Earth and Planetary Astrophysics High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena Solar and Stellar Astrophysics Recent observations suggest that planetary engulfment by a giant star may produce radiation that resembles subluminous red novae. We present three-dimensional hydrodynamical simulations of the interaction between an eccentric $5 \,M_J$ giant planet and its $1\,M_\odot$ red-giant host star. The planet's pericenter is initially $60\%$ of the stellar radius and is fully engulfed after tens of orbits. Once inside the stellar envelope, the planet generates pressure disturbances that steepen into shocks, ejecting material from the envelope. We use post-processing to calculate the light curves produced by planetary engulfment. We find that the hot stellar ejecta enhances the stellar luminosity by several orders of magnitude. A prolonged hydrogen recombination plateau appears when the ejecta cools to about $10^4\,\rm{K}$. The late-time rapid dimming of the light curve follows dust formation, which obscures the radiation. For planets with lower eccentricity, the orbital decay proceeds more slowly, although the observable properties remain similar. |
| title | Engulfment of Eccentric Planets by Giant Stars: Hydrodynamics and Light Curves |
| topic | Earth and Planetary Astrophysics High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena Solar and Stellar Astrophysics |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2510.25547 |