I Orbital distance increase during the white dwarf phase of the Sun

Click For Summary
The discussion centers on the estimated mass loss of the Sun during its white dwarf phase, potentially reducing its mass to about 50% of its current value. This reduction in mass would lead to a decrease in gravitational pull, causing the orbits of celestial bodies like Pluto to expand outward. Participants explore the calculation process for determining the new orbital distance, utilizing the relationship between orbital speed and radius derived from gravitational and centripetal forces. Conservation of angular momentum is also highlighted as a crucial factor in these calculations. Understanding these dynamics is essential for predicting the future positions of objects in the solar system.
Dreksler
Messages
14
Reaction score
4
TL;DR
Want to know as to how to calculate orbital distance of bodies in the Solar system during the white dwarf phase of the Sun.
Some estimates through calculating the sun mass loss and increase in mass loss say that the white dwarf phase of the Sun will have roughly about 50% the current mass of the Sun (not sure about it). Whatever the actual mass loss is going to be, assuming that the 50% mass loss is true, where would that approximately put the orbit of let's say Pluto, how much outward will it expand due to a lower gravitational pull from the Sun, and what is the calculation process?
 
Astronomy news on Phys.org
You have an equation relating orbital speed to radius (derived from gravitational force = "centripetal force").
Then use conservation of angular momentum.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Likes Vanadium 50 and Dreksler
Some 8 years ago I posted some experiments using 2 Software Defined Radios slaved to a common clock. The idea was measure small thermal noise by making correlation measurements between the IQ samples from each radio. This is a project that has kinda smoldered in the background where I've made progress in fits and starts. Since most (all?) RA signals are small thermal signals it seemed like the technique should be a natural approach. A recent thread discussing the feasibility of using SDRs to...

Similar threads