Princeton University Extrasolar Planet Discussion Group

Planets are expected to form in well-behaved consistent configurations much like our own Solar System. Over the past three decades, this picture has been thrown into serious tension as a myriad of bizarre planetary systems have been discovered. In this talk, I will discuss how understanding planetary motion is often the key to reconciling these strange worlds with theories of planet formation. Through detailed N-body simulations incorporating various novel physical mechanisms, I will present the dynamical histories of systems such as HAT-P-11 and 14 Herculis. These case studies not only provide compelling explanations for the architectures of these specific systems, but also shed light on the importance of more nuanced and detailed theories of planetary motion.