Instability of a Gaseous Envelope Surrounding a Planetary Core and Formation of Giant Planets

Abstract

We consider the evolution of the solar nebula in stages where, as studied previously by Hayashi, Nakazawa and Adachi, protoplanets composed of involatile materials are growing gradually through the capture of planetesimals. When a protoplanet becomes greater than the moon's mass, an appreciable amount of gas of the solar nebula is attracted by the protoplanet to form a gaseous envelope surrounding it.