Jupiter barrier

Jupiter Barrier or Jupiter Saturn Barrier is the name for an effect of the gas giants (in particular Jupiter), that reduces the likelihood for objects from the outer Solar System (in particular from the Oort cloud) to reach the inner Solar System.

Jupiter has been nicknamed the Solar System's "cosmic vacuum cleaner" by astronomers who speculate that its gravity reduces the amount of objects reaching the inner Solar System, protecting the smaller planets from impact events. Because such collisions can nearly, if not completely, destroy all life on a planet, the protection of the Jupiter barrier may have supported the evolution of biological complexity on Earth.

See also

• Jupiter trojan
• Late Heavy Bombardment

References

• Mikhail Yakovlevich Marov, Hans Rickman (eds.): Collisional Processes in the Solar System. Springer 2001, ISBN 0792369467, pp. 80–82
• Julio A. Fernandez: Comets: Nature, Dynamics, Origin, and their Cosmogonical Relevance. Springer, 2006, ISBN 9781402034954, pp. 136–138
• Harold F. Levison, Luke Dones, Martin J. Duncan: : The Origin Of Halley-Type Comets: Probing The Inner Oort Cloud
• Luke Dones, Paul R. Weissmann, Harold F. Levison, Michael J. Duncan: Oort Cloud Formation and Dynamics

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