1
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Brandt PC, Provornikova E, Bale SD, Cocoros A, DeMajistre R, Dialynas K, Elliott HA, Eriksson S, Fields B, Galli A, Hill ME, Horanyi M, Horbury T, Hunziker S, Kollmann P, Kinnison J, Fountain G, Krimigis SM, Kurth WS, Linsky J, Lisse CM, Mandt KE, Magnes W, McNutt RL, Miller J, Moebius E, Mostafavi P, Opher M, Paxton L, Plaschke F, Poppe AR, Roelof EC, Runyon K, Redfield S, Schwadron N, Sterken V, Swaczyna P, Szalay J, Turner D, Vannier H, Wimmer-Schweingruber R, Wurz P, Zirnstein EJ. Future Exploration of the Outer Heliosphere and Very Local Interstellar Medium by Interstellar Probe. Space Sci Rev 2023; 219:18. [PMID: 36874191 PMCID: PMC9974711 DOI: 10.1007/s11214-022-00943-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2022] [Accepted: 12/07/2022] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
A detailed overview of the knowledge gaps in our understanding of the heliospheric interaction with the largely unexplored Very Local Interstellar Medium (VLISM) are provided along with predictions of with the scientific discoveries that await. The new measurements required to make progress in this expanding frontier of space physics are discussed and include in-situ plasma and pick-up ion measurements throughout the heliosheath, direct sampling of the VLISM properties such as elemental and isotopic composition, densities, flows, and temperatures of neutral gas, dust and plasma, and remote energetic neutral atom (ENA) and Lyman-alpha (LYA) imaging from vantage points that can uniquely discern the heliospheric shape and bring new information on the interaction with interstellar hydrogen. The implementation of a pragmatic Interstellar Probe mission with a nominal design life to reach 375 Astronomical Units (au) with likely operation out to 550 au are reported as a result of a 4-year NASA funded mission study.
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Affiliation(s)
- P. C. Brandt
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD USA
| | - E. Provornikova
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD USA
| | - S. D. Bale
- University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA USA
| | - A. Cocoros
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD USA
| | - R. DeMajistre
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD USA
| | - K. Dialynas
- Office of Space Research and Technology, Academy of Athens, Athens, 10679 Greece
| | | | - S. Eriksson
- Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, CO USA
| | - B. Fields
- University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL USA
| | - A. Galli
- University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - M. E. Hill
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD USA
| | - M. Horanyi
- Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, CO USA
| | | | | | - P. Kollmann
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD USA
| | - J. Kinnison
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD USA
| | - G. Fountain
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD USA
| | - S. M. Krimigis
- Office of Space Research and Technology, Academy of Athens, Athens, 10679 Greece
| | | | - J. Linsky
- University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO USA
| | - C. M. Lisse
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD USA
| | - K. E. Mandt
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD USA
| | - W. Magnes
- Space Research Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Graz, Austria
| | - R. L. McNutt
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD USA
| | | | - E. Moebius
- University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH USA
| | - P. Mostafavi
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD USA
| | - M. Opher
- Boston University, Boston, MA USA
| | - L. Paxton
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD USA
| | - F. Plaschke
- Technical University Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Germany
| | - A. R. Poppe
- University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA USA
| | - E. C. Roelof
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD USA
| | - K. Runyon
- Planetary Science Institute, Tucson, AZ USA
| | | | | | | | | | - J. Szalay
- Princeton University, Princeton, NJ USA
| | - D. Turner
- The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD USA
| | | | | | - P. Wurz
- University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
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2
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Spencer JR, Stern SA, Moore JM, Weaver HA, Singer KN, Olkin CB, Verbiscer AJ, McKinnon WB, Parker JW, Beyer RA, Keane JT, Lauer TR, Porter SB, White OL, Buratti BJ, El-Maarry MR, Lisse CM, Parker AH, Throop HB, Robbins SJ, Umurhan OM, Binzel RP, Britt DT, Buie MW, Cheng AF, Cruikshank DP, Elliott HA, Gladstone GR, Grundy WM, Hill ME, Horanyi M, Jennings DE, Kavelaars JJ, Linscott IR, McComas DJ, McNutt RL, Protopapa S, Reuter DC, Schenk PM, Showalter MR, Young LA, Zangari AM, Abedin AY, Beddingfield CB, Benecchi SD, Bernardoni E, Bierson CJ, Borncamp D, Bray VJ, Chaikin AL, Dhingra RD, Fuentes C, Fuse T, Gay PL, Gwyn SDJ, Hamilton DP, Hofgartner JD, Holman MJ, Howard AD, Howett CJA, Karoji H, Kaufmann DE, Kinczyk M, May BH, Mountain M, Pätzold M, Petit JM, Piquette MR, Reid IN, Reitsema HJ, Runyon KD, Sheppard SS, Stansberry JA, Stryk T, Tanga P, Tholen DJ, Trilling DE, Wasserman LH. The geology and geophysics of Kuiper Belt object (486958) Arrokoth. Science 2020; 367:science.aay3999. [PMID: 32054694 DOI: 10.1126/science.aay3999] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2019] [Accepted: 01/27/2020] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
The Cold Classical Kuiper Belt, a class of small bodies in undisturbed orbits beyond Neptune, is composed of primitive objects preserving information about Solar System formation. In January 2019, the New Horizons spacecraft flew past one of these objects, the 36-kilometer-long contact binary (486958) Arrokoth (provisional designation 2014 MU69). Images from the flyby show that Arrokoth has no detectable rings, and no satellites (larger than 180 meters in diameter) within a radius of 8000 kilometers. Arrokoth has a lightly cratered, smooth surface with complex geological features, unlike those on previously visited Solar System bodies. The density of impact craters indicates the surface dates from the formation of the Solar System. The two lobes of the contact binary have closely aligned poles and equators, constraining their accretion mechanism.
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Affiliation(s)
- J R Spencer
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA.
| | - S A Stern
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - J M Moore
- NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035-1000, USA
| | - H A Weaver
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - K N Singer
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - C B Olkin
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - A J Verbiscer
- Department of Astronomy, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22904, USA
| | - W B McKinnon
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences and McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences, Washington University, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA
| | - J Wm Parker
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - R A Beyer
- SETI Institute, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA.,NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035-1000, USA
| | - J T Keane
- Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
| | - T R Lauer
- National Science Foundation's National Optical Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory, Tucson, AZ 26732, USA
| | - S B Porter
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - O L White
- SETI Institute, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA.,NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035-1000, USA
| | - B J Buratti
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - M R El-Maarry
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Birkbeck, University of London, London WC1E 7HX, UK.,University College London, Gower St, Bloomsbury, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - C M Lisse
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - A H Parker
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - H B Throop
- Independent Consultant, Washington, D.C., USA
| | - S J Robbins
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - O M Umurhan
- NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035-1000, USA
| | - R P Binzel
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - D T Britt
- Department of Physics, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32816, USA
| | - M W Buie
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - A F Cheng
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - D P Cruikshank
- NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035-1000, USA
| | - H A Elliott
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78238, USA
| | - G R Gladstone
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78238, USA
| | - W M Grundy
- Lowell Observatory, Flagstaff, AZ 86001, USA.,Department of Astronomy and Planetary Science, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, 86011, USA
| | - M E Hill
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M Horanyi
- Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80303, USA
| | - D E Jennings
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
| | - J J Kavelaars
- National Research Council of Canada, Victoria, BC V9E 2E7, Canada
| | - I R Linscott
- Independent Consultant, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
| | - D J McComas
- Department of Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - R L McNutt
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - S Protopapa
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - D C Reuter
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
| | - P M Schenk
- Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston, TX 77058, USA
| | | | - L A Young
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - A M Zangari
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - A Y Abedin
- National Research Council of Canada, Victoria, BC V9E 2E7, Canada
| | | | - S D Benecchi
- Planetary Science Institute, Tucson, AZ 85719, USA
| | - E Bernardoni
- Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80303, USA
| | - C J Bierson
- Earth and Planetary Science Department, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - D Borncamp
- Decipher Technology Studios, Alexandria, VA 22314, USA
| | - V J Bray
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
| | - A L Chaikin
- Independent Science Writer, Arlington, VT 05250, USA
| | | | - C Fuentes
- Universidad de Chile, Centro de Astrofísica y Tecnologías Afines, Santiago, Chile
| | - T Fuse
- Kashima Space Technology Center, National Institute of Information and Communications Technology, Kashima, Ibaraki 314-8501, Japan
| | - P L Gay
- Planetary Science Institute, Tucson, AZ 85719, USA
| | - S D J Gwyn
- National Research Council of Canada, Victoria, BC V9E 2E7, Canada
| | - D P Hamilton
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - J D Hofgartner
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - M J Holman
- Center for Astrophysics, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - A D Howard
- Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22904, USA
| | - C J A Howett
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - H Karoji
- National Institutes of Natural Sciences, Tokyo, Japan
| | - D E Kaufmann
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - M Kinczyk
- Marine, Earth, and Atmospheric Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USA
| | - B H May
- Independent Collaborator, Windlesham GU20 6YW, UK
| | - M Mountain
- Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Washington, DC 20004, USA
| | - M Pätzold
- Rheinisches Institut für Umweltforschung an der Universität zu Köln, Cologne 50931, Germany
| | - J M Petit
- Institut Univers, Temps-fréquence, Interfaces, Nanostructures, Atmosphère et environnement, Molécules, Unité Mixte de Recherche, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Universite Bourgogne Franche Comte, F-25000 Besancon, France
| | - M R Piquette
- Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80303, USA
| | - I N Reid
- Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
| | | | - K D Runyon
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - S S Sheppard
- Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, Carnegie Institution for Science, Washington, DC 20015, USA
| | - J A Stansberry
- Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
| | - T Stryk
- Roane State Community College, Oak Ridge, TN 37830, USA
| | - P Tanga
- Université Côte d'Azur, Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur, Laboratoire Lagrange/ Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Unité Mixte de Recherche 7293, 06304 Nice Cedex 4, France
| | - D J Tholen
- Institute for Astronomy, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA
| | - D E Trilling
- Department of Astronomy and Planetary Science, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, 86011, USA
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3
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McKinnon WB, Richardson DC, Marohnic JC, Keane JT, Grundy WM, Hamilton DP, Nesvorný D, Umurhan OM, Lauer TR, Singer KN, Stern SA, Weaver HA, Spencer JR, Buie MW, Moore JM, Kavelaars JJ, Lisse CM, Mao X, Parker AH, Porter SB, Showalter MR, Olkin CB, Cruikshank DP, Elliott HA, Gladstone GR, Parker JW, Verbiscer AJ, Young LA. The solar nebula origin of (486958) Arrokoth, a primordial contact binary in the Kuiper Belt. Science 2020; 367:science.aay6620. [PMID: 32054695 DOI: 10.1126/science.aay6620] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2019] [Accepted: 01/27/2020] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
The New Horizons spacecraft's encounter with the cold classical Kuiper Belt object (486958) Arrokoth (provisional designation 2014 MU69) revealed a contact-binary planetesimal. We investigated how Arrokoth formed and found that it is the product of a gentle, low-speed merger in the early Solar System. Its two lenticular lobes suggest low-velocity accumulation of numerous smaller planetesimals within a gravitationally collapsing cloud of solid particles. The geometric alignment of the lobes indicates that they were a co-orbiting binary that experienced angular momentum loss and subsequent merger, possibly because of dynamical friction and collisions within the cloud or later gas drag. Arrokoth's contact-binary shape was preserved by the benign dynamical and collisional environment of the cold classical Kuiper Belt and therefore informs the accretion processes that operated in the early Solar System.
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Affiliation(s)
- W B McKinnon
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences and McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA.
| | - D C Richardson
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - J C Marohnic
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - J T Keane
- Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
| | - W M Grundy
- Lowell Observatory, Flagstaff, AZ 86001, USA.,Department of Astronomy and Planetary Science, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USA
| | - D P Hamilton
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - D Nesvorný
- Division of Space Science and Engineering, Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - O M Umurhan
- NASA Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA.,SETI Institute, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
| | - T R Lauer
- National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory, National Science Foundation, Tucson, AZ 85726, USA
| | - K N Singer
- Division of Space Science and Engineering, Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - S A Stern
- Division of Space Science and Engineering, Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - H A Weaver
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - J R Spencer
- National Research Council of Canada, Victoria, BC V9E 2E7, Canada
| | - M W Buie
- Division of Space Science and Engineering, Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - J M Moore
- NASA Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | - J J Kavelaars
- National Research Council of Canada, Victoria, BC V9E 2E7, Canada
| | - C M Lisse
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - X Mao
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences and McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA
| | - A H Parker
- Division of Space Science and Engineering, Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - S B Porter
- Division of Space Science and Engineering, Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | | | - C B Olkin
- Division of Space Science and Engineering, Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - D P Cruikshank
- NASA Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | - H A Elliott
- Division of Space Science and Engineering, Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78238, USA.,Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Texas, San Antonio, TX 78249, USA
| | - G R Gladstone
- Division of Space Science and Engineering, Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78238, USA
| | - J Wm Parker
- Division of Space Science and Engineering, Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - A J Verbiscer
- Department of Astronomy, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22904, USA
| | - L A Young
- Division of Space Science and Engineering, Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
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4
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Kollmann P, Hill ME, Allen RC, McNutt RL, Brown LE, Barnes NP, Delamere P, Clark G, Andrews GB, Salazar N, Westlake J, Romeo G, Vandegriff J, Kusterer M, Smith D, Nelson K, Jaskulek S, Decker RB, Cheng AF, Krimigis SM, Lisse CM, Mitchell DG, Weaver HA, Elliott HA, Fattig E, Gladstone GR, Valek PW, Weidner S, Kammer J, Bagenal F, Horanyi M, Kaufmann D, Harch A, Olkin CB, Piquette MR, Spencer JR, Young LA, Ennico K, Summers ME, Stern SA. Pluto's Interaction With Energetic Heliospheric Ions. J Geophys Res Space Phys 2019; 124:7413-7424. [PMID: 35860291 PMCID: PMC9285724 DOI: 10.1029/2019ja026830] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2019] [Revised: 07/08/2019] [Accepted: 07/10/2019] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Pluto energies of a few kiloelectron volts and suprathermal ions with tens of kiloelectron volts and above. We measure this population using the Pluto Energetic Particle Spectrometer Science Investigation (PEPSSI) instrument on board the New Horizons spacecraft that flew by Pluto in 2015. Even though the measured ions have gyroradii larger than the size of Pluto and the cross section of its magnetosphere, we find that the boundary of the magnetosphere is depleting the energetic ion intensities by about an order of magnitude close to Pluto. The intensity is increasing exponentially with distance to Pluto and reaches nominal levels of the interplanetary medium at about 190R P distance. Inside the wake of Pluto, we observe oscillations of the ion intensities with a periodicity of about 0.2 hr. We show that these can be quantitatively explained by the electric field of an ultralow-frequency wave and discuss possible physical drivers for such a field. We find no evidence for the presence of plutogenic ions in the considered energy range.
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5
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Cruikshank DP, Materese CK, Pendleton YJ, Boston PJ, Grundy WM, Schmitt B, Lisse CM, Runyon KD, Keane JT, Beyer RA, Summers ME, Scipioni F, Stern SA, Dalle Ore CM, Olkin CB, Young LA, Ennico K, Weaver HA, Bray VJ. Prebiotic Chemistry of Pluto. Astrobiology 2019; 19:831-848. [PMID: 30907634 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2018.1927] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
We present the case for the presence of complex organic molecules, such as amino acids and nucleobases, formed by abiotic processes on the surface and in near-subsurface regions of Pluto. Pluto's surface is tinted with a range of non-ice substances with colors ranging from light yellow to red to dark brown; the colors match those of laboratory organic residues called tholins. Tholins are broadly characterized as complex, macromolecular organic solids consisting of a network of aromatic structures connected by aliphatic bridging units (e.g., Imanaka et al., 2004; Materese et al., 2014, 2015). The synthesis of tholins in planetary atmospheres and in surface ices has been explored in numerous laboratory experiments, and both gas- and solid-phase varieties are found on Pluto. A third variety of tholins, exposed at a site of tectonic surface fracturing called Virgil Fossae, appears to have come from a reservoir in the subsurface. Eruptions of tholin-laden liquid H2O from a subsurface aqueous repository appear to have covered portions of Virgil Fossae and its surroundings with a uniquely colored deposit (D.P. Cruikshank, personal communication) that is geographically correlated with an exposure of H2O ice that includes spectroscopically detected NH3 (C.M. Dalle Ore, personal communication). The subsurface organic material could have been derived from presolar or solar nebula processes, or might have formed in situ. Photolysis and radiolysis of a mixture of ices relevant to Pluto's surface composition (N2, CH4, CO) have produced strongly colored, complex organics with a significant aromatic content having a high degree of nitrogen substitution similar to the aromatic heterocycles pyrimidine and purine (Materese et al., 2014, 2015; Cruikshank et al., 2016). Experiments with pyrimidines and purines frozen in H2O-NH3 ice resulted in the formation of numerous nucleobases, including the biologically relevant guanine, cytosine, adenine, uracil, and thymine (Materese et al., 2017). The red material associated with the H2O ice may contain nucleobases resulting from energetic processing on Pluto's surface or in the interior. Some other Kuiper Belt objects also exhibit red colors similar to those found on Pluto and may therefore carry similar inventories of complex organic materials. The widespread and ubiquitous nature of similarly complex organic materials observed in a variety of astronomical settings drives the need for additional laboratory and modeling efforts to explain the origin and evolution of organic molecules. Pluto observations reveal complex organics on a small body that remains close to its place of origin in the outermost regions of the Solar System.
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Affiliation(s)
- D P Cruikshank
- 1NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, USA
| | - C K Materese
- 2Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland, USA
| | - Y J Pendleton
- 1NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, USA
| | - P J Boston
- 1NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, USA
| | - W M Grundy
- 3Lowell Observatory, Flagstaff, Arizona, USA
| | - B Schmitt
- 4Université Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, IPAG, Grenoble, France
| | - C M Lisse
- 5Applied Physics Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University, Laurel, Maryland, USA
| | - K D Runyon
- 5Applied Physics Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University, Laurel, Maryland, USA
| | - J T Keane
- 6California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California, USA
| | - R A Beyer
- 1NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, USA
| | - M E Summers
- 7Department of Physics and Astronomy, George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia, USA
| | - F Scipioni
- 1NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, USA
| | - S A Stern
- 8Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, Colorado, USA
| | - C M Dalle Ore
- 1NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, USA
| | - C B Olkin
- 8Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, Colorado, USA
| | - L A Young
- 8Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, Colorado, USA
| | - K Ennico
- 1NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, USA
| | - H A Weaver
- 5Applied Physics Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University, Laurel, Maryland, USA
| | - V J Bray
- 9Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA
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6
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Stern SA, Weaver HA, Spencer JR, Olkin CB, Gladstone GR, Grundy WM, Moore JM, Cruikshank DP, Elliott HA, McKinnon WB, Parker JW, Verbiscer AJ, Young LA, Aguilar DA, Albers JM, Andert T, Andrews JP, Bagenal F, Banks ME, Bauer BA, Bauman JA, Bechtold KE, Beddingfield CB, Behrooz N, Beisser KB, Benecchi SD, Bernardoni E, Beyer RA, Bhaskaran S, Bierson CJ, Binzel RP, Birath EM, Bird MK, Boone DR, Bowman AF, Bray VJ, Britt DT, Brown LE, Buckley MR, Buie MW, Buratti BJ, Burke LM, Bushman SS, Carcich B, Chaikin AL, Chavez CL, Cheng AF, Colwell EJ, Conard SJ, Conner MP, Conrad CA, Cook JC, Cooper SB, Custodio OS, Dalle Ore CM, Deboy CC, Dharmavaram P, Dhingra RD, Dunn GF, Earle AM, Egan AF, Eisig J, El-Maarry MR, Engelbrecht C, Enke BL, Ercol CJ, Fattig ED, Ferrell CL, Finley TJ, Firer J, Fischetti J, Folkner WM, Fosbury MN, Fountain GH, Freeze JM, Gabasova L, Glaze LS, Green JL, Griffith GA, Guo Y, Hahn M, Hals DW, Hamilton DP, Hamilton SA, Hanley JJ, Harch A, Harmon KA, Hart HM, Hayes J, Hersman CB, Hill ME, Hill TA, Hofgartner JD, Holdridge ME, Horányi M, Hosadurga A, Howard AD, Howett CJA, Jaskulek SE, Jennings DE, Jensen JR, Jones MR, Kang HK, Katz DJ, Kaufmann DE, Kavelaars JJ, Keane JT, Keleher GP, Kinczyk M, Kochte MC, Kollmann P, Krimigis SM, Kruizinga GL, Kusnierkiewicz DY, Lahr MS, Lauer TR, Lawrence GB, Lee JE, Lessac-Chenen EJ, Linscott IR, Lisse CM, Lunsford AW, Mages DM, Mallder VA, Martin NP, May BH, McComas DJ, McNutt RL, Mehoke DS, Mehoke TS, Nelson DS, Nguyen HD, Núñez JI, Ocampo AC, Owen WM, Oxton GK, Parker AH, Pätzold M, Pelgrift JY, Pelletier FJ, Pineau JP, Piquette MR, Porter SB, Protopapa S, Quirico E, Redfern JA, Regiec AL, Reitsema HJ, Reuter DC, Richardson DC, Riedel JE, Ritterbush MA, Robbins SJ, Rodgers DJ, Rogers GD, Rose DM, Rosendall PE, Runyon KD, Ryschkewitsch MG, Saina MM, Salinas MJ, Schenk PM, Scherrer JR, Schlei WR, Schmitt B, Schultz DJ, Schurr DC, Scipioni F, Sepan RL, Shelton RG, Showalter MR, Simon M, Singer KN, Stahlheber EW, Stanbridge DR, Stansberry JA, Steffl AJ, Strobel DF, Stothoff MM, Stryk T, Stuart JR, Summers ME, Tapley MB, Taylor A, Taylor HW, Tedford RM, Throop HB, Turner LS, Umurhan OM, Van Eck J, Velez D, Versteeg MH, Vincent MA, Webbert RW, Weidner SE, Weigle GE, Wendel JR, White OL, Whittenburg KE, Williams BG, Williams KE, Williams SP, Winters HL, Zangari AM, Zurbuchen TH. Initial results from the New Horizons exploration of 2014 MU 69, a small Kuiper Belt object. Science 2019; 364:364/6441/eaaw9771. [PMID: 31097641 DOI: 10.1126/science.aaw9771] [Citation(s) in RCA: 88] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2019] [Accepted: 04/16/2019] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
The Kuiper Belt is a distant region of the outer Solar System. On 1 January 2019, the New Horizons spacecraft flew close to (486958) 2014 MU69, a cold classical Kuiper Belt object approximately 30 kilometers in diameter. Such objects have never been substantially heated by the Sun and are therefore well preserved since their formation. We describe initial results from these encounter observations. MU69 is a bilobed contact binary with a flattened shape, discrete geological units, and noticeable albedo heterogeneity. However, there is little surface color or compositional heterogeneity. No evidence for satellites, rings or other dust structures, a gas coma, or solar wind interactions was detected. MU69's origin appears consistent with pebble cloud collapse followed by a low-velocity merger of its two lobes.
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Affiliation(s)
- S A Stern
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA.
| | - H A Weaver
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - J R Spencer
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - C B Olkin
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - G R Gladstone
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78238, USA
| | - W M Grundy
- Lowell Observatory, Flagstaff, AZ 86001, USA
| | - J M Moore
- NASA Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | - D P Cruikshank
- NASA Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | - H A Elliott
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78238, USA.,Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Texas, San Antonio, TX 78249, USA
| | - W B McKinnon
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences and McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences, Washington University, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA
| | - J Wm Parker
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - A J Verbiscer
- Department of Astronomy, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22904, USA
| | - L A Young
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - D A Aguilar
- Independent consultant, Carbondale, CO 81623, USA
| | - J M Albers
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - T Andert
- Universität der Bundeswehr München, Neubiberg 85577, Germany
| | - J P Andrews
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - F Bagenal
- Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80303, USA
| | - M E Banks
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
| | - B A Bauer
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | | | - K E Bechtold
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - C B Beddingfield
- NASA Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA.,SETI Institute, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
| | - N Behrooz
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - K B Beisser
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - S D Benecchi
- Planetary Science Institute, Tucson, AZ 85719, USA
| | - E Bernardoni
- Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80303, USA
| | - R A Beyer
- NASA Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA.,SETI Institute, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
| | - S Bhaskaran
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - C J Bierson
- Earth and Planetary Science Department, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - R P Binzel
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - E M Birath
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - M K Bird
- Argelander-Institut für Astronomie, University of Bonn, Bonn D-53121, Germany.,Rheinisches Institut für Umweltforschung, Universität zu Köln, Cologne 50931, Germany
| | - D R Boone
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - A F Bowman
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - V J Bray
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
| | - D T Britt
- Department of Physics, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32816, USA
| | - L E Brown
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M R Buckley
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M W Buie
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - B J Buratti
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - L M Burke
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - S S Bushman
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - B Carcich
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA.,Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - A L Chaikin
- Independent science writer, Arlington, VT 05250, USA
| | - C L Chavez
- NASA Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA.,SETI Institute, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
| | - A F Cheng
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - E J Colwell
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - S J Conard
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M P Conner
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - C A Conrad
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - J C Cook
- Pinhead Institute, Telluride, CO 81435, USA
| | - S B Cooper
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - O S Custodio
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - C M Dalle Ore
- NASA Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA.,SETI Institute, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
| | - C C Deboy
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - P Dharmavaram
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | | | - G F Dunn
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78238, USA
| | - A M Earle
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - A F Egan
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - J Eisig
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M R El-Maarry
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Birkbeck, University of London, London WC1E 7HX, UK
| | - C Engelbrecht
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - B L Enke
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - C J Ercol
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - E D Fattig
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78238, USA
| | - C L Ferrell
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - T J Finley
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - J Firer
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | | | - W M Folkner
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - M N Fosbury
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - G H Fountain
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - J M Freeze
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - L Gabasova
- University Grenoble Alpes, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Institut de Planétologie et d'Astrophysique de Grenoble, 38000 Grenoble, France
| | - L S Glaze
- NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC 20546, USA
| | - J L Green
- NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC 20546, USA
| | - G A Griffith
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - Y Guo
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M Hahn
- Rheinisches Institut für Umweltforschung, Universität zu Köln, Cologne 50931, Germany
| | - D W Hals
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - D P Hamilton
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - S A Hamilton
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - J J Hanley
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78238, USA
| | - A Harch
- Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - K A Harmon
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - H M Hart
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - J Hayes
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - C B Hersman
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M E Hill
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - T A Hill
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - J D Hofgartner
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - M E Holdridge
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M Horányi
- Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80303, USA
| | - A Hosadurga
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - A D Howard
- Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22904, USA
| | - C J A Howett
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - S E Jaskulek
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - D E Jennings
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
| | - J R Jensen
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M R Jones
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - H K Kang
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - D J Katz
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - D E Kaufmann
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - J J Kavelaars
- National Research Council of Canada, Victoria, BC V9E 2E7, Canada
| | - J T Keane
- Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
| | - G P Keleher
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M Kinczyk
- Marine, Earth, and Atmospheric Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USA
| | - M C Kochte
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - P Kollmann
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - S M Krimigis
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - G L Kruizinga
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - D Y Kusnierkiewicz
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M S Lahr
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - T R Lauer
- National Optical Astronomy Observatory, Tucson, AZ 26732, USA
| | - G B Lawrence
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - J E Lee
- NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, AL 35812, USA
| | | | - I R Linscott
- Independent consultant, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
| | - C M Lisse
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - A W Lunsford
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
| | - D M Mages
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - V A Mallder
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - N P Martin
- Independent consultant, Crested Butte, CO 81224, USA
| | - B H May
- Independent collaborator, Windlesham GU20 6YW, UK
| | - D J McComas
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78238, USA.,Department of Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - R L McNutt
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - D S Mehoke
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - T S Mehoke
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | | | - H D Nguyen
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - J I Núñez
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - A C Ocampo
- NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC 20546, USA
| | - W M Owen
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - G K Oxton
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - A H Parker
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - M Pätzold
- Rheinisches Institut für Umweltforschung, Universität zu Köln, Cologne 50931, Germany
| | | | | | - J P Pineau
- Stellar Solutions, Palo Alto, CA 94306, USA
| | - M R Piquette
- Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80303, USA
| | - S B Porter
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - S Protopapa
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - E Quirico
- University Grenoble Alpes, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Institut de Planétologie et d'Astrophysique de Grenoble, 38000 Grenoble, France
| | - J A Redfern
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - A L Regiec
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | | | - D C Reuter
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
| | - D C Richardson
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - J E Riedel
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - M A Ritterbush
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - S J Robbins
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - D J Rodgers
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - G D Rogers
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - D M Rose
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - P E Rosendall
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - K D Runyon
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M G Ryschkewitsch
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M M Saina
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | | | - P M Schenk
- Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston, TX 77058, USA
| | - J R Scherrer
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78238, USA
| | - W R Schlei
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - B Schmitt
- University Grenoble Alpes, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Institut de Planétologie et d'Astrophysique de Grenoble, 38000 Grenoble, France
| | - D J Schultz
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - D C Schurr
- NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC 20546, USA
| | - F Scipioni
- NASA Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA.,SETI Institute, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
| | - R L Sepan
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - R G Shelton
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | | | - M Simon
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - K N Singer
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - E W Stahlheber
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | | | - J A Stansberry
- Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
| | - A J Steffl
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - D F Strobel
- Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
| | - M M Stothoff
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78238, USA
| | - T Stryk
- Roane State Community College, Oak Ridge, TN 37830, USA
| | - J R Stuart
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - M E Summers
- George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030, USA
| | - M B Tapley
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78238, USA
| | - A Taylor
- KinetX Aerospace, Tempe, AZ 85284, USA
| | - H W Taylor
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - R M Tedford
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - H B Throop
- Planetary Science Institute, Tucson, AZ 85719, USA
| | - L S Turner
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - O M Umurhan
- NASA Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA.,SETI Institute, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
| | - J Van Eck
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - D Velez
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - M H Versteeg
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78238, USA
| | - M A Vincent
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - R W Webbert
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - S E Weidner
- Department of Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - G E Weigle
- Independent consultant, Burden, KS 67019, USA
| | - J R Wendel
- NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC 20546, USA
| | - O L White
- NASA Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA.,SETI Institute, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
| | - K E Whittenburg
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | | | | | - S P Williams
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - H L Winters
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - A M Zangari
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
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7
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Singer KN, McKinnon WB, Gladman B, Greenstreet S, Bierhaus EB, Stern SA, Parker AH, Robbins SJ, Schenk PM, Grundy WM, Bray VJ, Beyer RA, Binzel RP, Weaver HA, Young LA, Spencer JR, Kavelaars JJ, Moore JM, Zangari AM, Olkin CB, Lauer TR, Lisse CM, Ennico K. Impact craters on Pluto and Charon indicate a deficit of small Kuiper belt objects. Science 2019; 363:955-959. [PMID: 30819958 DOI: 10.1126/science.aap8628] [Citation(s) in RCA: 88] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2017] [Accepted: 02/05/2019] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
The flyby of Pluto and Charon by the New Horizons spacecraft provided high-resolution images of cratered surfaces embedded in the Kuiper belt, an extensive region of bodies orbiting beyond Neptune. Impact craters on Pluto and Charon were formed by collisions with other Kuiper belt objects (KBOs) with diameters from ~40 kilometers to ~300 meters, smaller than most KBOs observed directly by telescopes. We find a relative paucity of small craters ≲13 kilometers in diameter, which cannot be explained solely by geological resurfacing. This implies a deficit of small KBOs (≲1 to 2 kilometers in diameter). Some surfaces on Pluto and Charon are likely ≳4 billion years old, thus their crater records provide information on the size-frequency distribution of KBOs in the early Solar System.
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8
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Weaver HA, Buie MW, Buratti BJ, Grundy WM, Lauer TR, Olkin CB, Parker AH, Porter SB, Showalter MR, Spencer JR, Stern SA, Verbiscer AJ, McKinnon WB, Moore JM, Robbins SJ, Schenk P, Singer KN, Barnouin OS, Cheng AF, Ernst CM, Lisse CM, Jennings DE, Lunsford AW, Reuter DC, Hamilton DP, Kaufmann DE, Ennico K, Young LA, Beyer RA, Binzel RP, Bray VJ, Chaikin AL, Cook JC, Cruikshank DP, Dalle Ore CM, Earle AM, Gladstone GR, Howett CJA, Linscott IR, Nimmo F, Parker JW, Philippe S, Protopapa S, Reitsema HJ, Schmitt B, Stryk T, Summers ME, Tsang CCC, Throop HHB, White OL, Zangari AM. The small satellites of Pluto as observed by New Horizons. Science 2016; 351:aae0030. [PMID: 26989256 DOI: 10.1126/science.aae0030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 67] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
The New Horizons mission has provided resolved measurements of Pluto's moons Styx, Nix, Kerberos, and Hydra. All four are small, with equivalent spherical diameters of ~40 kilometers for Nix and Hydra and ~10 kilometers for Styx and Kerberos. They are also highly elongated, with maximum to minimum axis ratios of ~2. All four moons have high albedos (~50 to 90%) suggestive of a water-ice surface composition. Crater densities on Nix and Hydra imply surface ages of at least 4 billion years. The small moons rotate much faster than synchronous, with rotational poles clustered nearly orthogonal to the common pole directions of Pluto and Charon. These results reinforce the hypothesis that the small moons formed in the aftermath of a collision that produced the Pluto-Charon binary.
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Affiliation(s)
- H A Weaver
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA.
| | - M W Buie
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - B J Buratti
- NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
| | - W M Grundy
- Lowell Observatory, Flagstaff, AZ 86001, USA
| | - T R Lauer
- National Optical Astronomy Observatory, Tucson, AZ 26732, USA
| | - C B Olkin
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - A H Parker
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - S B Porter
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | | | - J R Spencer
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - S A Stern
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - A J Verbiscer
- Department of Astronomy, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22904, USA
| | - W B McKinnon
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Washington University, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA
| | - J M Moore
- Space Science Division, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | - S J Robbins
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - P Schenk
- Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston, TX 77058, USA
| | - K N Singer
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - O S Barnouin
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - A F Cheng
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - C M Ernst
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - C M Lisse
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - D E Jennings
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
| | - A W Lunsford
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
| | - D C Reuter
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
| | - D P Hamilton
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - D E Kaufmann
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - K Ennico
- Space Science Division, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | - L A Young
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - R A Beyer
- SETI Institute, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA. Space Science Division, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | - R P Binzel
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - V J Bray
- University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
| | - A L Chaikin
- Independent science writer, Arlington, VT, USA
| | - J C Cook
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - D P Cruikshank
- Space Science Division, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | - C M Dalle Ore
- Space Science Division, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | - A M Earle
- University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
| | - G R Gladstone
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78238, USA
| | - C J A Howett
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | | | - F Nimmo
- University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - J Wm Parker
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - S Philippe
- Université Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, IPAG, F-38000 Grenoble, France
| | - S Protopapa
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - H J Reitsema
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - B Schmitt
- Université Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, IPAG, F-38000 Grenoble, France
| | - T Stryk
- Roane State Community College, Oak Ridge, TN 37830, USA
| | - M E Summers
- George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030, USA
| | - C C C Tsang
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - H H B Throop
- Planetary Science Institute, Tucson, AZ 85719, USA
| | - O L White
- Space Science Division, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | - A M Zangari
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
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9
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Bagenal F, Horányi M, McComas DJ, McNutt RL, Elliott HA, Hill ME, Brown LE, Delamere PA, Kollmann P, Krimigis SM, Kusterer M, Lisse CM, Mitchell DG, Piquette M, Poppe AR, Strobel DF, Szalay JR, Valek P, Vandegriff J, Weidner S, Zirnstein EJ, Stern SA, Ennico K, Olkin CB, Weaver HA, Young LA. Pluto's interaction with its space environment: Solar wind, energetic particles, and dust. Science 2016; 351:aad9045. [PMID: 26989259 DOI: 10.1126/science.aad9045] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
The New Horizons spacecraft carried three instruments that measured the space environment near Pluto as it flew by on 14 July 2015. The Solar Wind Around Pluto (SWAP) instrument revealed an interaction region confined sunward of Pluto to within about 6 Pluto radii. The region's surprisingly small size is consistent with a reduced atmospheric escape rate, as well as a particularly high solar wind flux. Observations from the Pluto Energetic Particle Spectrometer Science Investigation (PEPSSI) instrument suggest that ions are accelerated and/or deflected around Pluto. In the wake of the interaction region, PEPSSI observed suprathermal particle fluxes equal to about 1/10 of the flux in the interplanetary medium and increasing with distance downstream. The Venetia Burney Student Dust Counter, which measures grains with radii larger than 1.4 micrometers, detected one candidate impact in ±5 days around New Horizons' closest approach, indicating an upper limit of <4.6 kilometers(-3) for the dust density in the Pluto system.
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Affiliation(s)
- F Bagenal
- Laboratory of Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80600, USA.
| | - M Horányi
- Laboratory of Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80600, USA
| | - D J McComas
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78228, USA. University of Texas at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX 78249, USA
| | - R L McNutt
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - H A Elliott
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78228, USA
| | - M E Hill
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - L E Brown
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | | | - P Kollmann
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - S M Krimigis
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA. Academy of Athens, 28 Panapistimiou, 10679 Athens, Greece
| | - M Kusterer
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - C M Lisse
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - D G Mitchell
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M Piquette
- Laboratory of Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80600, USA
| | - A R Poppe
- Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - D F Strobel
- Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
| | - J R Szalay
- Laboratory of Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80600, USA. Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - P Valek
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78228, USA
| | - J Vandegriff
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - S Weidner
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78228, USA
| | - E J Zirnstein
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78228, USA
| | - S A Stern
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - K Ennico
- NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | - C B Olkin
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - H A Weaver
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - L A Young
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
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10
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Stern SA, Bagenal F, Ennico K, Gladstone GR, Grundy WM, McKinnon WB, Moore JM, Olkin CB, Spencer JR, Weaver HA, Young LA, Andert T, Andrews J, Banks M, Bauer B, Bauman J, Barnouin OS, Bedini P, Beisser K, Beyer RA, Bhaskaran S, Binzel RP, Birath E, Bird M, Bogan DJ, Bowman A, Bray VJ, Brozovic M, Bryan C, Buckley MR, Buie MW, Buratti BJ, Bushman SS, Calloway A, Carcich B, Cheng AF, Conard S, Conrad CA, Cook JC, Cruikshank DP, Custodio OS, Dalle Ore CM, Deboy C, Dischner ZJB, Dumont P, Earle AM, Elliott HA, Ercol J, Ernst CM, Finley T, Flanigan SH, Fountain G, Freeze MJ, Greathouse T, Green JL, Guo Y, Hahn M, Hamilton DP, Hamilton SA, Hanley J, Harch A, Hart HM, Hersman CB, Hill A, Hill ME, Hinson DP, Holdridge ME, Horanyi M, Howard AD, Howett CJA, Jackman C, Jacobson RA, Jennings DE, Kammer JA, Kang HK, Kaufmann DE, Kollmann P, Krimigis SM, Kusnierkiewicz D, Lauer TR, Lee JE, Lindstrom KL, Linscott IR, Lisse CM, Lunsford AW, Mallder VA, Martin N, McComas DJ, McNutt RL, Mehoke D, Mehoke T, Melin ED, Mutchler M, Nelson D, Nimmo F, Nunez JI, Ocampo A, Owen WM, Paetzold M, Page B, Parker AH, Parker JW, Pelletier F, Peterson J, Pinkine N, Piquette M, Porter SB, Protopapa S, Redfern J, Reitsema HJ, Reuter DC, Roberts JH, Robbins SJ, Rogers G, Rose D, Runyon K, Retherford KD, Ryschkewitsch MG, Schenk P, Schindhelm E, Sepan B, Showalter MR, Singer KN, Soluri M, Stanbridge D, Steffl AJ, Strobel DF, Stryk T, Summers ME, Szalay JR, Tapley M, Taylor A, Taylor H, Throop HB, Tsang CCC, Tyler GL, Umurhan OM, Verbiscer AJ, Versteeg MH, Vincent M, Webbert R, Weidner S, Weigle GE, White OL, Whittenburg K, Williams BG, Williams K, Williams S, Woods WW, Zangari AM, Zirnstein E. The Pluto system: Initial results from its exploration by New Horizons. Science 2015; 350:aad1815. [DOI: 10.1126/science.aad1815] [Citation(s) in RCA: 367] [Impact Index Per Article: 40.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- S. A. Stern
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - F. Bagenal
- Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80303, USA
| | - K. Ennico
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | | | | | - W. B. McKinnon
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Washington University, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA
| | - J. M. Moore
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | - C. B. Olkin
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - J. R. Spencer
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - H. A. Weaver
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - L. A. Young
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - T. Andert
- Universität der Bundeswehr München, Neubiberg 85577, Germany
| | - J. Andrews
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - M. Banks
- Planetary Science Institute, Tucson, AZ 85719, USA
| | - B. Bauer
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - J. Bauman
- KinetX Aerospace, Tempe, AZ 85284, USA
| | - O. S. Barnouin
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - P. Bedini
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - K. Beisser
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - R. A. Beyer
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | - S. Bhaskaran
- NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, La Cañada Flintridge, CA 91011, USA
| | - R. P. Binzel
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - E. Birath
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - M. Bird
- University of Bonn, Bonn D-53113, Germany
| | - D. J. Bogan
- NASA Headquarters (retired), Washington, DC 20546, USA
| | - A. Bowman
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - V. J. Bray
- University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
| | - M. Brozovic
- NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, La Cañada Flintridge, CA 91011, USA
| | - C. Bryan
- KinetX Aerospace, Tempe, AZ 85284, USA
| | - M. R. Buckley
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M. W. Buie
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - B. J. Buratti
- NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, La Cañada Flintridge, CA 91011, USA
| | - S. S. Bushman
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - A. Calloway
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - B. Carcich
- Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - A. F. Cheng
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - S. Conard
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - C. A. Conrad
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - J. C. Cook
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - D. P. Cruikshank
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | - O. S. Custodio
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - C. M. Dalle Ore
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | - C. Deboy
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | | | - P. Dumont
- KinetX Aerospace, Tempe, AZ 85284, USA
| | - A. M. Earle
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - H. A. Elliott
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 28510, USA
| | - J. Ercol
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - C. M. Ernst
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - T. Finley
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - S. H. Flanigan
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - G. Fountain
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M. J. Freeze
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - T. Greathouse
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 28510, USA
| | - J. L. Green
- NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC 20546, USA
| | - Y. Guo
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M. Hahn
- Rheinisches Institut für Umweltforschung an der Universität zu Köln, Cologne 50931, Germany
| | - D. P. Hamilton
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - S. A. Hamilton
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - J. Hanley
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 28510, USA
| | - A. Harch
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - H. M. Hart
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - C. B. Hersman
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - A. Hill
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M. E. Hill
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - D. P. Hinson
- Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Institute, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
| | - M. E. Holdridge
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M. Horanyi
- Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80303, USA
| | - A. D. Howard
- Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22904, USA
| | | | | | - R. A. Jacobson
- NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, La Cañada Flintridge, CA 91011, USA
| | - D. E. Jennings
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
| | - J. A. Kammer
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - H. K. Kang
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | | | - P. Kollmann
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - S. M. Krimigis
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - D. Kusnierkiewicz
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - T. R. Lauer
- National Optical Astronomy Observatory, Tucson, AZ 26732, USA
| | - J. E. Lee
- NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, AL 35812, USA
| | - K. L. Lindstrom
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | | | - C. M. Lisse
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - A. W. Lunsford
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
| | - V. A. Mallder
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - N. Martin
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - D. J. McComas
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 28510, USA
| | - R. L. McNutt
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - D. Mehoke
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - T. Mehoke
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - E. D. Melin
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M. Mutchler
- Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
| | - D. Nelson
- KinetX Aerospace, Tempe, AZ 85284, USA
| | - F. Nimmo
- University of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA
| | - J. I. Nunez
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - A. Ocampo
- NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC 20546, USA
| | - W. M. Owen
- NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, La Cañada Flintridge, CA 91011, USA
| | - M. Paetzold
- Rheinisches Institut für Umweltforschung an der Universität zu Köln, Cologne 50931, Germany
| | - B. Page
- KinetX Aerospace, Tempe, AZ 85284, USA
| | - A. H. Parker
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - J. W. Parker
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | | | - J. Peterson
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - N. Pinkine
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M. Piquette
- Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80303, USA
| | - S. B. Porter
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - S. Protopapa
- Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - J. Redfern
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | | | - D. C. Reuter
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
| | - J. H. Roberts
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - S. J. Robbins
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - G. Rogers
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - D. Rose
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - K. Runyon
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | | | | | - P. Schenk
- Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston, TX 77058, USA
| | - E. Schindhelm
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - B. Sepan
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - M. R. Showalter
- Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Institute, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
| | - K. N. Singer
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - M. Soluri
- Michael Soluri Photography, New York, NY 10014, USA
| | | | - A. J. Steffl
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | | | - T. Stryk
- Roane State Community College, Jamestown, TN 38556, USA
| | | | - J. R. Szalay
- Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80303, USA
| | - M. Tapley
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 28510, USA
| | - A. Taylor
- KinetX Aerospace, Tempe, AZ 85284, USA
| | - H. Taylor
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - H. B. Throop
- Planetary Science Institute, Tucson, AZ 85719, USA
| | | | - G. L. Tyler
- Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - O. M. Umurhan
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | - A. J. Verbiscer
- Department of Astronomy, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22904, USA
| | - M. H. Versteeg
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 28510, USA
| | - M. Vincent
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - R. Webbert
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - S. Weidner
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 28510, USA
| | - G. E. Weigle
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 28510, USA
| | - O. L. White
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Ames Research Center, Space Science Division, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
| | - K. Whittenburg
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | | | | | - S. Williams
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - W. W. Woods
- Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - A. M. Zangari
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
| | - E. Zirnstein
- Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 28510, USA
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11
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A'Hearn MF, Belton MJS, Delamere WA, Feaga LM, Hampton D, Kissel J, Klaasen KP, McFadden LA, Meech KJ, Melosh HJ, Schultz PH, Sunshine JM, Thomas PC, Veverka J, Wellnitz DD, Yeomans DK, Besse S, Bodewits D, Bowling TJ, Carcich BT, Collins SM, Farnham TL, Groussin O, Hermalyn B, Kelley MS, Kelley MS, Li JY, Lindler DJ, Lisse CM, McLaughlin SA, Merlin F, Protopapa S, Richardson JE, Williams JL. EPOXI at Comet Hartley 2. Science 2011; 332:1396-400. [DOI: 10.1126/science.1204054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 351] [Impact Index Per Article: 27.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
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12
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Dello Russo N, Vervack RJ, Weaver HA, Biver N, Bockelée-Morvan D, Crovisier J, Lisse CM. Compositional homogeneity in the fragmented comet 73P/Schwassmann–Wachmann 3. Nature 2007; 448:172-5. [PMID: 17625560 DOI: 10.1038/nature05908] [Citation(s) in RCA: 87] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2007] [Accepted: 05/02/2007] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
The remarkable compositional diversity of volatile ices within comets can plausibly be attributed to several factors, including differences in the chemical, thermal and radiation environments in comet-forming regions, chemical evolution during their long storage in reservoirs far from the Sun, and thermal processing by the Sun after removal from these reservoirs. To determine the relevance of these factors, measurements of the chemistry as a function of depth in cometary nuclei are critical. Fragmenting comets expose formerly buried material, but observational constraints have in the past limited the ability to assess the importance of formative conditions and the effects of evolutionary processes on measured composition. Here we report the chemical composition of two distinct fragments of 73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 3. The fragments are remarkably similar in composition, in marked contrast to the chemical diversity within the overall comet population and contrary to the expectation that short-period comets should show strong compositional variation with depth in the nucleus owing to evolutionary processing from numerous close passages to the Sun. Comet 73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 3 is also depleted in the most volatile ices compared to other comets, suggesting that the depleted carbon-chain chemistry seen in some comets from the Kuiper belt reservoir is primordial and not evolutionary.
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Affiliation(s)
- N Dello Russo
- Space Department, The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, 11100 Johns Hopkins Road, Laurel, Maryland 20723-6099, USA.
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Lisse CM, Vancleve J, Adams AC, A'hearn MF, Fernández YR, Farnham TL, Armus L, Grillmair CJ, Ingalls J, Belton MJS, Groussin O, McFadden LA, Meech KJ, Schultz PH, Clark BC, Feaga LM, Sunshine JM. Spitzer Spectral Observations of the Deep Impact Ejecta. Science 2006; 313:635-40. [PMID: 16840662 DOI: 10.1126/science.1124694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 260] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Spitzer Space Telescope imaging spectrometer observations of comet 9P/Tempel 1 during the Deep Impact encounter returned detailed, highly structured, 5- to 35-micrometer spectra of the ejecta. Emission signatures due to amorphous and crystalline silicates, amorphous carbon, carbonates, phyllosilicates, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, water gas and ice, and sulfides were found. Good agreement is seen between the ejecta spectra and the material emitted from comet C/1995 O1 (Hale-Bopp) and the circumstellar material around the young stellar object HD100546. The atomic abundance of the observed material is consistent with solar and C1 chondritic abundances, and the dust-to-gas ratio was determined to be greater than or equal to 1.3. The presence of the observed mix of materials requires efficient methods of annealing amorphous silicates and mixing of high- and low-temperature phases over large distances in the early protosolar nebula.
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Affiliation(s)
- C M Lisse
- Planetary Exploration Group, Space Department, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, 11100 Johns Hopkins Road, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
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Sunshine JM, A'Hearn MF, Groussin O, Li JY, Belton MJS, Delamere WA, Kissel J, Klaasen KP, McFadden LA, Meech KJ, Melosh HJ, Schultz PH, Thomas PC, Veverka J, Yeomans DK, Busko IC, Desnoyer M, Farnham TL, Feaga LM, Hampton DL, Lindler DJ, Lisse CM, Wellnitz DD. Exposed Water Ice Deposits on the Surface of Comet 9P/Tempel 1. Science 2006; 311:1453-5. [PMID: 16456037 DOI: 10.1126/science.1123632] [Citation(s) in RCA: 210] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
We report the direct detection of solid water ice deposits exposed on the surface of comet 9P/Tempel 1, as observed by the Deep Impact mission. Three anomalously colored areas are shown to include water ice on the basis of their near-infrared spectra, which include diagnostic water ice absorptions at wavelengths of 1.5 and 2.0 micrometers. These absorptions are well modeled as a mixture of nearby non-ice regions and 3 to 6% water ice particles 10 to 50 micrometers in diameter. These particle sizes are larger than those ejected during the impact experiment, which suggests that the surface deposits are loose aggregates. The total area of exposed water ice is substantially less than that required to support the observed ambient outgassing from the comet, which likely has additional source regions below the surface.
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Affiliation(s)
- J M Sunshine
- Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), Chantilly, VA 20151, USA.
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15
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A'Hearn MF, Belton MJS, Delamere WA, Kissel J, Klaasen KP, McFadden LA, Meech KJ, Melosh HJ, Schultz PH, Sunshine JM, Thomas PC, Veverka J, Yeomans DK, Baca MW, Busko I, Crockett CJ, Collins SM, Desnoyer M, Eberhardy CA, Ernst CM, Farnham TL, Feaga L, Groussin O, Hampton D, Ipatov SI, Li JY, Lindler D, Lisse CM, Mastrodemos N, Owen WM, Richardson JE, Wellnitz DD, White RL. Deep Impact: Excavating Comet Tempel 1. Science 2005; 310:258-64. [PMID: 16150978 DOI: 10.1126/science.1118923] [Citation(s) in RCA: 640] [Impact Index Per Article: 33.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Deep Impact collided with comet Tempel 1, excavating a crater controlled by gravity. The comet's outer layer is composed of 1- to 100-micrometer fine particles with negligible strength (<65 pascals). Local gravitational field and average nucleus density (600 kilograms per cubic meter) are estimated from ejecta fallback. Initial ejecta were hot (>1000 kelvins). A large increase in organic material occurred during and after the event, with smaller changes in carbon dioxide relative to water. On approach, the spacecraft observed frequent natural outbursts, a mean radius of 3.0 +/- 0.1 kilometers, smooth and rough terrain, scarps, and impact craters. A thermal map indicates a surface in equilibrium with sunlight.
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Affiliation(s)
- M F A'Hearn
- University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA.
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16
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Meech KJ, Ageorges N, A'Hearn MF, Arpigny C, Ates A, Aycock J, Bagnulo S, Bailey J, Barber R, Barrera L, Barrena R, Bauer JM, Belton MJS, Bensch F, Bhattacharya B, Biver N, Blake G, Bockelée-Morvan D, Boehnhardt H, Bonev BP, Bonev T, Buie MW, Burton MG, Butner HM, Cabanac R, Campbell R, Campins H, Capria MT, Carroll T, Chaffee F, Charnley SB, Cleis R, Coates A, Cochran A, Colom P, Conrad A, Coulson IM, Crovisier J, deBuizer J, Dekany R, de Léon J, Dello Russo N, Delsanti A, DiSanti M, Drummond J, Dundon L, Etzel PB, Farnham TL, Feldman P, Fernández YR, Filipovic MD, Fisher S, Fitzsimmons A, Fong D, Fugate R, Fujiwara H, Fujiyoshi T, Furusho R, Fuse T, Gibb E, Groussin O, Gulkis S, Gurwell M, Hadamcik E, Hainaut O, Harker D, Harrington D, Harwit M, Hasegawa S, Hergenrother CW, Hirst P, Hodapp K, Honda M, Howell ES, Hutsemékers D, Iono D, Ip WH, Jackson W, Jehin E, Jiang ZJ, Jones GH, Jones PA, Kadono T, Kamath UW, Käufl HU, Kasuga T, Kawakita H, Kelley MS, Kerber F, Kidger M, Kinoshita D, Knight M, Lara L, Larson SM, Lederer S, Lee CF, Levasseur-Regourd AC, Li JY, Li QS, Licandro J, Lin ZY, Lisse CM, LoCurto G, Lovell AJ, Lowry SC, Lyke J, Lynch D, Ma J, Magee-Sauer K, Maheswar G, Manfroid J, Marco O, Martin P, Melnick G, Miller S, Miyata T, Moriarty-Schieven GH, Moskovitz N, Mueller BEA, Mumma MJ, Muneer S, Neufeld DA, Ootsubo T, Osip D, Pandea SK, Pantin E, Paterno-Mahler R, Patten B, Penprase BE, Peck A, Petitas G, Pinilla-Alonso N, Pittichova J, Pompei E, Prabhu TP, Qi C, Rao R, Rauer H, Reitsema H, Rodgers SD, Rodriguez P, Ruane R, Ruch G, Rujopakarn W, Sahu DK, Sako S, Sakon I, Samarasinha N, Sarkissian JM, Saviane I, Schirmer M, Schultz P, Schulz R, Seitzer P, Sekiguchi T, Selman F, Serra-Ricart M, Sharp R, Snell RL, Snodgrass C, Stallard T, Stecklein G, Sterken C, Stüwe JA, Sugita S, Sumner M, Suntzeff N, Swaters R, Takakuwa S, Takato N, Thomas-Osip J, Thompson E, Tokunaga AT, Tozzi GP, Tran H, Troy M, Trujillo C, Van Cleve J, Vasundhara R, Vazquez R, Vilas F, Villanueva G, von Braun K, Vora P, Wainscoat RJ, Walsh K, Watanabe J, Weaver HA, Weaver W, Weiler M, Weissman PR, Welsh WF, Wilner D, Wolk S, Womack M, Wooden D, Woodney LM, Woodward C, Wu ZY, Wu JH, Yamashita T, Yang B, Yang YB, Yokogawa S, Zook AC, Zauderer A, Zhao X, Zhou X, Zucconi JM. Deep Impact: observations from a worldwide Earth-based campaign. Science 2005; 310:265-9. [PMID: 16150977 DOI: 10.1126/science.1118978] [Citation(s) in RCA: 158] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
On 4 July 2005, many observatories around the world and in space observed the collision of Deep Impact with comet 9P/Tempel 1 or its aftermath. This was an unprecedented coordinated observational campaign. These data show that (i) there was new material after impact that was compositionally different from that seen before impact; (ii) the ratio of dust mass to gas mass in the ejecta was much larger than before impact; (iii) the new activity did not last more than a few days, and by 9 July the comet's behavior was indistinguishable from its pre-impact behavior; and (iv) there were interesting transient phenomena that may be correlated with cratering physics.
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Affiliation(s)
- K J Meech
- Institute for Astronomy, University of Hawaii at Manoa, 2680 Woodlawn Drive, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA
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17
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Weaver HA, Sekanina Z, Toth I, Delahodde CE, Hainaut OR, Lamy PL, Bauer JM, A'Hearn MF, Arpigny C, Combi MR, Davies JK, Feldman PD, Festou MC, Hook R, Jorda L, Keesey MS, Lisse CM, Marsden BG, Meech KJ, Tozzi GP, West R. HST and VLT investigations of the fragments of comet C/1999 S4 (LINEAR). Science 2001; 292:1329-33. [PMID: 11359001 DOI: 10.1126/science.1058606] [Citation(s) in RCA: 73] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
At least 16 fragments were detected in images of comet C/1999 S4 (LINEAR) taken on 5 August 2000 with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and on 6 August with the Very Large Telescope (VLT). Photometric analysis of the fragments indicates that the largest ones have effective spherical diameters of about 100 meters, which implies that the total mass in the observed fragments was about 2 x 10(9) kilograms. The comet's dust tail, which was the most prominent optical feature in August, was produced during a major fragmentation event, whose activity peaked on UT 22.8 +/- 0.2 July 2000. The mass of small particles (diameters less than about 230 micrometers) in the tail was about 4 x 10(8) kilograms, which is comparable to the mass contained in a large fragment and to the total mass lost from water sublimation after 21 July 2000 (about 3 x 10(8) kilograms). HST spectroscopic observations during 5 and 6 July 2000 demonstrate that the nucleus contained little carbon monoxide ice (ratio of carbon monoxide to water is less than or equal to 0.4%), which suggests that this volatile species did not play a role in the fragmentation of C/1999 S4 (LINEAR).
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Affiliation(s)
- H A Weaver
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, 3400 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21218-2686, USA
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Abstract
Using soft x-ray observations of the bright new comet C/1999 S4 (LINEAR) with the Chandra x-ray observatory, we have detected x-ray line emission created by charge exchange between highly ionized solar wind minor ions and neutral gases in the comet's coma. The emission morphology was symmetrically crescent shaped and extended out to 300,000 kilometers from the nucleus. The emission spectrum contains 6 lines at 320, 400, 490, 560, 600, and 670 electron volts, attributable to electron capture and radiative deexcitation by the solar wind species C(+5), C(+6), N(+7), O(+7), and O(+8). A contemporaneous 7-day soft x-ray light curve obtained using the Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer demonstrates a large increase in the comet's emission coincident with a strong solar flare on 14 and 15 July 2000.
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Affiliation(s)
- C M Lisse
- University of Maryland, Department of Astronomy, College Park, MD 20742, USA.
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Neugebauer M, Cravens TE, Lisse CM, Ipavich FM, Christian D, von Steiger R, Bochsler P, Shah PD, Armstrong TP. The relation of temporal variations of soft X-ray emission from comet Hyakutake to variations of ion fluxes in the solar wind. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2000. [DOI: 10.1029/1999ja000299] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Lisse CM, Dennerl K, Englhauser J, Harden M, Marshall FE, Mumma MJ, Petre R, Pye JP, Ricketts MJ, Schmitt J, Trümper J, West RG. Discovery of X-ray and Extreme Ultraviolet Emission from Comet C/Hyakutake 1996 B2. Science 1996. [DOI: 10.1126/science.274.5285.205] [Citation(s) in RCA: 347] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- C. M. Lisse
- C. M. Lisse is in the Astronomy Department, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, and NASA Goddard Spaceflight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
| | - K. Dennerl
- K. Dennerl, J. Englhauser, J. Schmitt, and J. Trümper are at the Max-Planck-Institut für Extraterrestriche Physik, Postfach 1603, 85740 Garching, Germany
| | - J. Englhauser
- K. Dennerl, J. Englhauser, J. Schmitt, and J. Trümper are at the Max-Planck-Institut für Extraterrestriche Physik, Postfach 1603, 85740 Garching, Germany
| | - M. Harden
- M. Harden and M. J. Ricketts are in the Space and Astrophysics Division, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Chilton, Didcot, Oxon, OX11 0QX, UK
| | - F. E. Marshall
- F. E. Marshall, M. J. Mumma, and R. Petre are at the NASA Goddard Spaceflight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
| | - M. J. Mumma
- F. E. Marshall, M. J. Mumma, and R. Petre are at the NASA Goddard Spaceflight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
| | - R. Petre
- F. E. Marshall, M. J. Mumma, and R. Petre are at the NASA Goddard Spaceflight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
| | - J. P. Pye
- J. P. Pye and R. G. West are in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester, University Road, Leicester, LE1 7RH, UK
| | - M. J. Ricketts
- M. Harden and M. J. Ricketts are in the Space and Astrophysics Division, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Chilton, Didcot, Oxon, OX11 0QX, UK
| | - J. Schmitt
- K. Dennerl, J. Englhauser, J. Schmitt, and J. Trümper are at the Max-Planck-Institut für Extraterrestriche Physik, Postfach 1603, 85740 Garching, Germany
| | - J. Trümper
- K. Dennerl, J. Englhauser, J. Schmitt, and J. Trümper are at the Max-Planck-Institut für Extraterrestriche Physik, Postfach 1603, 85740 Garching, Germany
| | - R. G. West
- J. P. Pye and R. G. West are in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester, University Road, Leicester, LE1 7RH, UK
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Egarievwe SU, Chen KT, Burger A, James RB, Lisse CM. Detection and Electrical Properties of Cd1-xZnxTe Detectors at Elevated Temperatures. J Xray Sci Technol 1996; 6:309-315. [PMID: 21307531 DOI: 10.3233/xst-1996-6401] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
We have studied the behavior of Cd1-xZnxTe detectors in the temperature range 24-70°C. The detector count rate stability and leakage currents are presented as a function of voltage, time, and temperature. Detector polarization due to bulk and surface effects leading to a decreased leakage current was observed. At 70°C, the position of the 32 keV photopeak of 133Ba was stable with time. The peak position varies within only 3 keV, and the peak quality factor varied between 0.31 and 0.41, for a 24 h period of operation at a 60 V bias. The net count to total count ratio was also stable, with values varying between 0.56 and 0.59. The net count to total count ratio decreased from 0.78 at 25°C to 0.71 at 60°C. The conclusion is that Cd1-xZnxTe is a promising material for gamma ray detection at temperatures above room temperature.
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Affiliation(s)
- S U Egarievwe
- Center for Photonic Materials and Devices, Department of Physics, Fisk University, Nashville,Tennessee 37208
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