Formation of Isothermal Disks around Protoplanets. I. Introductory Three-Dimensional Global Simulations for Sub-Neptune-Mass Protoplanets

TL;DR

This study uses 3D global simulations to explore the formation and characteristics of isothermal circumplanetary disks around sub-Neptune-mass protoplanets, revealing their size, structure, and gas exchange dynamics.

Contribution

First 3D global simulations of isothermal circumplanetary disks around sub-Neptune-mass protoplanets, showing their size, structure, and gas exchange processes.

Findings

Disk size is about one-tenth of the Hill radius.

Gas accretes vertically and returns near the midplane, indicating an open system.

Disks are rotationally supported and consistent with irregular satellite orbits.

Abstract

The regular satellites found around Neptune ($\approx 17~M_{\Earth}$) and Uranus ($\approx 14.5~M_{\Earth}$) suggest that past gaseous circumplanetary disks may have co-existed with solids around sub-Neptune-mass protoplanets ($< 17~M_{\Earth}$). These disks have been shown to be cool, optically thin, quiescent, with low surface density and low viscosity. Numerical studies of the formation are difficult and technically challenging. As an introductory attempt, three-dimensional global simulations are performed to explore the formation of circumplanetary disks around sub-Neptune-mass protoplanets embedded within an isothermal protoplanetary disk at the inviscid limit of the fluid in the absence of self-gravity. Under such conditions, a sub-Neptune-mass protoplanet can reasonably have a rotationally supported circumplanetary disk. The size of the circumplanetary disk is found to be roughly one-tenth of the corresponding Hill radius, which is consistent with the orbital radii of irregular satellites found for Uranus. The protoplanetary gas accretes onto the circumplanetary disk vertically from high altitude and returns to the protoplanetary disk again near the midplane. This implies an open system in which the circumplanetary disk constantly exchanges angular momentum and material with its surrounding prenatal protoplanetary gas.