天苑四
Computer simulations of the dusty disk orbiting Epsilon Eridani suggest that the shape of the disk may be explained by the presence of a second planet, tentatively dubbed Epsilon Eridani c. Clumping in the dust disk may occur because dust particles are being trapped in orbits that have resonant orbital periods with a planet in an eccentric orbit. The postulated Epsilon Eridani c would orbit at a distance of 40 AU, with an eccentricity of 0.3 and a period of 280 years. The inner cavity of the disk may be explained by the presence of additional planets. Current models of planet formation cannot easily explain how a planet could have been created at this distance from Epsilon Eridani. The disk is expected to have dissipated long before a giant planet could have formed. Instead, the planet may have formed at an orbital distance of about 10 AU, then migrated outward because of gravitational interaction with the disc or with other planets in the system.