The Large Scale Structures in the Solar System: II. Resonant Dust Belts Associated With the Orbits of Four Giant Planets

Abstract

In part I, using an effective computational approach, we have reconstructed the population of dust sources between Jupiter and Neptune. Here, in part II, we present the results on distribution of dust produced by 157 real sources (100 Jupiter-family comets with semi-major axes $a<20$ AU, 51 Kuiper belt, and 6 Centaur objects) as well as 211 fictitious sources taken from our computed sample. The following processes that influence the dust particle dynamics are taken into account: 1) gravitational scattering on four giant planets; 2) planetary resonances; and 3) the Poynting-Robertson (P-R) and solar wind drags. A file consisting of $0.9\times 10^6$ particle positions has been computed to simulate the dust distribution in the outer parts of the Solar system. We find that this distribution is highly non-uniform, with most of the dust concentrating into four belts associated with the orbits of four giant planets, with a sharp rise (depending on the size of particles) at the innermost part of the ring. As in I, we reveal a rich and sophisticated resonant structure of these belts containing families of resonances and gaps. A dissipative nature of the P-R drag results in specific features of particle&#39;s capture into, and evolution in, the resonances. Based on our simulations, we expect a new, quasi-stationary dust population to exist in the belts near Jupiter and Saturn, which is highly inclined and possesses large eccentricities. This population is basically non-resonant and is an important addition to otherwise resonant dust belts. The simulated dust is likely the main source of the zodiacal light in the outer Solar system, which will be analyzed in our further work.