64,215 research outputs found
Chaotic diffusion of the Vesta family induced by close encounters with massive asteroids
We numerically estimate the semi-major axis chaotic diffusion of the Vesta
family asteroids induced by close encounters with 11 massive main belt
asteroids : (1) Ceres, (2) Pallas, (3) Juno, (4) Vesta, (7) Iris, (10) Hygiea,
(15) Eunomia, (19) Fortuna, (324) Bamberga, (532) Herculina, (704) Interamnia.
We find that most of the diffusion is due to Ceres and Vesta. By extrapolating
our results, we are able to constrain the global effect of close encounters
with all the main belt asteroids. A comparison of this drift estimate with the
one expected for the Yarkovsky effect shows that for asteroids whose diameter
is larger than about 40 km, close encounters dominate the Yarkovsky effect.
Overall, our findings confirm the standard scenario for the history of the
Vesta family.Comment: 9 pages, 9 figures, 1 Table, submitte
The Roles of Gene Duplication, Gene Conversion and Positive Selection in Rodent \u3ci\u3eEsp\u3c/i\u3e and \u3ci\u3eMup\u3c/i\u3e Pheromone Gene Families with Comparison to the \u3ci\u3eAbp\u3c/i\u3e Family
Three proteinaceous pheromone families, the androgen-binding proteins (ABPs), the exocrine-gland secreting peptides (ESPs) and the major urinary proteins (MUPs) are encoded by large gene families in the genomes of Mus musculus and Rattus norvegicus. We studied the evolutionary histories of the Mup and Esp genes and compared them with what is known about the Abp genes. Apparently gene conversion has played little if any role in the expansion of the mouse Class A and Class B Mup genes and pseudogenes, and the rat Mups. By contrast, we found evidence of extensive gene conversion in many Esp genes although not in all of them. Our studies of selection identified at least two amino acid sites in β-sheets as having evolved under positive selection in the mouse Class A and Class B MUPs and in rat MUPs. We show that selection may have acted on the ESPs by determining Ka/Ks for Exon 3 sequences with and without the converted sequence segment. While it appears that purifying selection acted on the ESP signal peptides, the secreted portions of the ESPs probably have undergone much more rapid evolution. When the inner gene converted fragment sequences were removed, eleven Esp paralogs were present in two or more pairs with Ka/Ks \u3e1.0 and thus we propose that positive selection is detectable by this means in at least some mouse Esp paralogs. We compare and contrast the evolutionary histories of all three mouse pheromone gene families in light of their proposed functions in mouse communication
Collisional Formation and Modeling of Asteroid Families
In the last decade, thanks to the development of sophisticated numerical
codes, major breakthroughs have been achieved in our understanding of the
formation of asteroid families by catastrophic disruption of large parent
bodies. In this review, we describe numerical simulations of asteroid
collisions that reproduced the main properties of families, accounting for both
the fragmentation of an asteroid at the time of impact and the subsequent
gravitational interactions of the generated fragments. The simulations
demonstrate that the catastrophic disruption of bodies larger than a few
hundred meters in diameter leads to the formation of large aggregates due to
gravitational reaccumulation of smaller fragments, which helps explain the
presence of large members within asteroid families. Thus, for the first time,
numerical simulations successfully reproduced the sizes and ejection velocities
of members of representative families. Moreover, the simulations provide
constraints on the family dynamical histories and on the possible internal
structure of family members and their parent bodies.Comment: Chapter to appear in the (University of Arizona Press) Space Science
Series Book: Asteroids I
Modeling the Formation of Giant Planet Cores I: Evaluating Key Processes
One of the most challenging problems we face in our understanding of planet
formation is how Jupiter and Saturn could have formed before the the solar
nebula dispersed. The most popular model of giant planet formation is the
so-called 'core accretion' model. In this model a large planetary embryo formed
first, mainly by two-body accretion. This is then followed by a period of
inflow of nebular gas directly onto the growing planet. The core accretion
model has an Achilles heel, namely the very first step. We have undertaken the
most comprehensive study of this process to date. In this study we numerically
integrate the orbits of a number of planetary embryos embedded in a swarm of
planetesimals. In these experiments we have included: 1) aerodynamic gas drag,
2) collisional damping between planetesimals, 3) enhanced embryo cross-sections
due to their atmospheres, 4) planetesimal fragmentation, and 5) planetesimal
driven migration. We find that the gravitational interaction between the
embryos and the planetesimals lead to the wholesale redistribution of material
- regions are cleared of material and gaps open near the embryos. Indeed, in
90% of our simulations without fragmentation, the region near that embryos is
cleared of planetesimals before much growth can occur. The remaining 10%,
however, the embryos undergo a burst of outward migration that significantly
increases growth. On timescales of ~100,000 years, the outer embryo can migrate
~6 AU and grow to roughly 30 Earth-masses. We also find that the inclusion of
planetesimal fragmentation tends to inhibit growth.Comment: Accepted to AJ, 62 pages 11 figure
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