Physics
Scientific paper
Jul 1999
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1999hst..prop.8274l&link_type=abstract
HST Proposal ID #8274
Physics
Hst Proposal Id #8274 Solar System
Scientific paper
Following our recent success in detecting and characterizing eight cometary nuclei with the HST, we now propose a minimum program to determine the basic physical properties of a large fraction of the population of short-period comets. By acquiring statistically significant data, we can study the origin of this family of comets and test the hypothesis that they are collisional fragments from the Kuiper Belt Objects, although with much less insight than would be provided by our major proposal emphThe Origin of Short-Period Comets. Our technique takes advantage of the high resolution of the PC2 to clearly distinguish the nuclei from the surrounding comae provided they come within 2 AU from Earth. Cycle 8 is exceptionally favorable as 13 short-period comets meet this criterion. We also propose to observe the favorably-placed Centaur, 29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 1, which may be in transition from the Kuiper Belt to the short-period family of objects. Observations will be made through several filters {some combination of U, B, V, R, I depending on the brightness} to obtain unique color information. If appropriate, corrections will be applied to the measured sizes to remove the effect of erosion and retrieve the ``original'' size distribution function. The size and color results obtained during our survey will nearly double the number of cometary nuclei for which this information is available.
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