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https://stockholmuniversity.zoom.us/j/530682073
The orbital properties of planets we observe may tell us something about other planets in the system. For example, planets on orbits too close to those already observed may be excluded on stability grounds. In addition, the present orbital properties may tell us about the history of a particular system. Many observed giant planets lie on eccentric orbits. Such orbits could be the result of strong scatterings with other giant planets. The same dynamical instability that produces these scatterings may also cause habitable planets in interior orbits to become ejected, destroyed, or be transported out of the habitable zone. I show how by measuring the orbital properties of any surviving gas giants, one may learn something about the likelyhood that the system contains habitable worlds.