Abstract

In the last 10 years we have focused our work to reconstruct the evolution of our solar system, from the phase dominated by the interactions of the planets with the proto-planetary nebula up to the current time. We have now build a quite coherent scenario of the solar system evolution that allows us to explain most of its current properties. This scenario will be detailed in this colloquium. It shows that the current structure of the solar system isdue to a sequence of specific "accidents". Thus, we can ask ourselves the question of what would our system look like if some of these "accidents" had not occurred or had they occurred differently. This exercise suggests some venues to explain the great diversity in the structures of the extra-solar planetary systems observed to date.