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PRODID:UW-Madison-Physics-Events
BEGIN:VEVENT
SEQUENCE:1
UID:UW-Physics-Event-9577
DTSTART:20260326T203000Z
DTEND:20260326T213000Z
DTSTAMP:20260413T084159Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260210T162938Z
LOCATION:4421 Sterling Hall
SUMMARY:Toward Real Rocky Planet Interiors with Ideal Multicomponent M
 ixing\, Astronomy Colloquium\, Dr. David Rice\, UW-Madison
DESCRIPTION:As observational precision improves\, a leading uncertaint
 y in exoplanet interior inference is no longer the data but our models
  of realistic\, multicomponent interiors. I present a mixing framework
  focused on planets less than 10 Earth-masses that treats differentiat
 ed layers as chemically consistent mixtures rather than endmembers. We
  implement this framework in the open-source planet interior code Magr
 athea. We solve the mineralogy of rocky mantles in closed form from fo
 ur elemental ratios\, Ca/Mg\, Si/Mg\, Al/Mg\, Fe/Mg\, using stoichiome
 tric relationships to keep the mantle in chemical equilibrium across u
 pper and lower regions. The resulting phase proportions of Fe–Mg sil
 icates and accessory Ca- and Al-bearing minerals are broadly consisten
 t with mineralogy from Perple_X Gibbs free-energy minimization but are
  obtained with a much faster and auditable scheme. We then use ideal m
 ixing to translate these assemblages into density and an adiabatic tem
 perature gradient. We extend the same machinery to tests of light elem
 ents in metallic cores\, rock–water mixing\, and mixed atmosphere sp
 ecies. In each case\, we highlight where composition inferences are mo
 st sensitive to mixing assumptions. These developments build on the mo
 dular equation-of-state and phase-diagram infrastructure of Magrathea 
 v2\, enabling reproducible model intercomparisons where differences ca
 n be traced to specific materials\, phases\, and mixing choices rather
  than hidden defaults.
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URL:https://www.physics.wisc.edu/events/?id=9577
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