Maximum size of solar system

[petrushka.googol]

Our solar system consists of one star and 8 planets (primarily) in equilibrium.

 

Is there an upper limit to the number of planets and planetoids that can be sustained by a star like our Sun?

 

For example if our solar system had say 15 planets of different masses could that have also constituted a stable configuration?

 

Can all such configurations be practically conjectured? (Are there equations to define these relations?)

 

 

[Ophiolite]

My understanding of this is that the instabilities that might arise and lead to planets being either ejected from the system, or plunged into the star, arise more from gravitational interaction between those planets, rather than between planets and star. The probability of instability in any system will tend to rise with the number of 'participants', so there is likely some practical upper limit..

 

Much of the work on planetary formation is conducted via simulations using finite element analysis. I would think that an appropriate FEA study could define that practical upper limit, but I am not aware of any such research to date.

[Enthalpy]

Much simulation work has been and is done on this topic and related ones (not by FEA). Though, astronomer now know that these simulations don't work properly, because they predicted instability (for planets around a binary star for instance) but the configurations have been observed. Looks like the algorithm was unstable, not the celestial configuration. So the present situation is rather: we ignore it.

 

For instance Jupiter and Saturn have many moons. Some moons are in resonance, others are not and don't get ejected neither. This is a hint that many planets may orbit smoothly a star.

[Archimedes]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't our solar system, in it's younger days, have many more planets and planetoids that were subject to collisions? I would think that for a star such as our sun, the limit would be close to what we have now, because to get to the stable system we have now, many bodies collided and joined to form larger bodies, which then stabilized? Just a thought, I could be wrong.

 

-Arch

[michel123456]

IIRC the solar system is not stable.

Have to dig to find back the info.

 

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That is not exactly what I searched but found this

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stability_of_the_Solar_System

Edited October 12, 2013 by michel123456

[Archimedes]

IIRC the solar system is not stable.

Have to dig to find back the info.

 

---------------

That is not exactly what I searched but found this

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stability_of_the_Solar_System

Okay, now I remember reading about that. The more planets you have in a system, the higher the potential for collisions and chaos.

 

For a sun like star, I would say we are probably close to a more chaotic number of planets. Now, if you had a larger star, and had more space in between the planets, then it is definitely feasible to have more planets.

 

-Arch

Edited October 13, 2013 by Archimedes