FORMATION OF THE GIANT PLANETS BY CONCURRENT ACCRETION OF SOLIDS AND GAS

New numerical simulations of the formation of the giant planets are pr esented, in which for the first time both the gas and planetesimal acc retion rates are calculated in a self-consistent, interactive fashion. The simulations combine three elements: (1) three-body accretion cros s sections of solids onto an isolated planetary embryo, (2) a stellar evolution code for the planet's gaseous envelope, and (3) a planetesim al dissolution code within the envelope, used to evaluate the planet's effective capture radius and the energy deposition profile of accrete d material. Major assumptions include: The planet is embedded in a dis k of gas and small planetesimals with locally uniform initial surface mass density, and planetesimals are not allowed to migrate into or out of the planet's feeding zone. All simulations are characterized by th ree major phases. During the first phase, the planet's mass consists p rimarily of solid material. The planetesimal accretion rate, which dom inates that of gas, rapidly increases owing to runaway accretion, then decreases as the planet's feeding zone is depleted. During the second phase, both solid and gas accretion rates are small and nearly indepe ndent of time. The third phase, marked by runaway gas accretion, start s when the solid and gas masses are about equal. It is engendered by a strong positive feedback on the gas accretion rates, driven by the ra pid contraction of the gaseous envelope and the rapid expansion of the outer boundary, which depends on the planet's total mass. The overall evolutionary time scale is generally determined by the length of the second phase. The actual rates at which the giant planets accreted sma ll planetesimals is probably intermediate between the constant rates a ssumed in most previous studies and the highly variable rates used her e. Within the context of the adopted model of planetesimal accretion, the joint constraints of the time scale for dissipation of the solar n ebula and the current high-Z masses of the giant planets lead to estim ates of the initial surface density (sigma(init)) of planetesimals in the outer region of the solar nebula. The results show that sigma(init ) approximate to 10 g cm(-2) near Jupiter's orbit and that sigma(init) proportional to a(-2), where a is the distance from the Sun. These va lues are a factor of 3 to 4 times as high as that of the ''minimum-mas s'' solar nebula at Jupiter's distance and a factor of 2 to 3 times as high at Saturn's distance. The estimates for the formation time of Ju piter and Saturn are 1 to 10 million years, whereas those for Uranus f all in the range 2 to 16 million years. These estimates follow from th e properties of our Solar System and do not necessarily apply to giant planets in other planetary systems. (C) 1996 Academic Press, Inc.