Chapter 5: Settling Down | Life and Death of a Planetary System – Exoplanet Exploration: Planets Beyond our Solar System

Chapter 5: Settling Down | Life and Death of a Planetary System – Exoplanet Exploration: Planets Beyond our Solar System

Settling Down

At approximately 100 million to 1 billion years old, planets tend to settle down in their orbits and stars don’t flare up as much. Our own solar system, about 4.5 billion years old, is the model for this idea of planetary "middle age." Mandell thinks of our planetary system as about 45 to 50 years old, when scaled down to a human lifetime.