Origin of Phobos and Deimos: Orbital Evolution Shortly after Formation from a Potential Dislocation
This paper deals with the formation and evolution of Mars’ moons, Phobos and Deimos, assuming the dislocation of a larger progenitor as the origin of these moons. The study by R. Hyodo et al. argues that under somewhat simplistic modeling, the postdislocation orbits of Phobos and Deimos inevitably c...
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| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
IOP Publishing
2025-01-01
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| Series: | The Planetary Science Journal |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/PSJ/adcab2 |
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| Summary: | This paper deals with the formation and evolution of Mars’ moons, Phobos and Deimos, assuming the dislocation of a larger progenitor as the origin of these moons. The study by R. Hyodo et al. argues that under somewhat simplistic modeling, the postdislocation orbits of Phobos and Deimos inevitably collide within 10,000 yr, leading to their mutual annihilation. These findings are based on ${ \mathcal N }$ -body simulations, accounting for Mars’ J _2 and J _4 gravitational perturbations and mutual perturbations between the moons. In this paper, we challenge these findings by extending their work. We incorporate important perturbations such as solar perturbations, Mars’ axial precession and nutation, and its deformation along three axes. We also extend some of the hypotheses made by R. Hyodo et al. concerning the initial distribution of Phobos and Deimos after the dislocation. Our analysis reveals that including these additional perturbations, as well as the possibility of having more than two fragments after the dislocation, does not alter the ultimate fate of Phobos and Deimos. The moons still converge towards collision within comparable timescales, supporting R. Hyodo et al.'s conclusions that the dislocation hypothesis under the dynamical scenario developed by A. Bagheri et al. has, in the best conditions, about a 10% chance of surviving after the first 100,000 yr following their formation. |
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| ISSN: | 2632-3338 |