Characterizing the scale lengths of CN and C2 in the inner comae of the B and C fragments of comet 73P/Schwassman-Wachmann 3

Details Characterizing the scale lengths of CN and C2 in the inner comae of the B and C fragments of comet 73P/Schwassman-Wachmann 3 Characterizing the scale lengths of CN and C2 in the inner comae of the B and C fragments of comet 73P/Schwassman-Wachmann 3

Dec 2009

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2009agufm.p11c1237h&link_type=abstract

American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2009, abstract #P11C-1237

Physics

[6210] Planetary Sciences: Solar System Objects / Comets

Scientific paper

The 2006 apparition of comet 73P/Schwassman-Wachmann 3 (SW3) presented two unique opportunities for detailed study. SW3 was observed to break apart near perihelion in 1996 yet survived in the form of several sub-fragments that reappeared in 2001 and 2006, some of which exhibited gas production rates comparable to or greater than the original object. The high level of relative activity suggested the exposure of fresh ice from the breakup event and an opportunity to compare the relative abundances of volatiles from different pieces of the same nucleus with potentially different evolutionary histories. In addition to its multiple components and their high activity levels, the close perigee of the nuclei (0.75 AU) offered an unprecedented opportunity to probe the inner coma photochemistry of comet volatiles. We describe here results from observations of the fragments of SW3 that were obtained using wide-field Hydra integral field spectrometer at the WIYN telescope at Kitt Peak during the period leading up to perigee. The Hydra is capable of positioning 100 3-arcsecond fibers at different locations over a 1 degree field. For SW3 the spectrometer was configured to provide low dispersion spectra from 350-650 nm in each fiber over a series of concentric rings extending up to 23 arcminutes from a central nucleus. From these spectra we have extracted the brightness of several key diagnostic species, mapped their radial distributions with increasing cometocentric distance, and utilized well-tested radial expansion models to determine the parent-daughter scale lengths. We discuss the implications of the best-fit model parameters for the expected lifetimes of short-lived potential parents for different carbon bearing species and for the relative compositions of the fragments.

Affiliated with

Also associated with

No associations

Rating

Characterizing the scale lengths of CN and C2 in the inner comae of the B and C fragments of comet 73P/Schwassman-Wachmann 3 does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.

If you have personal experience with Characterizing the scale lengths of CN and C2 in the inner comae of the B and C fragments of comet 73P/Schwassman-Wachmann 3, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Characterizing the scale lengths of CN and C2 in the inner comae of the B and C fragments of comet 73P/Schwassman-Wachmann 3 will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

Comments { 0 }

Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-1767281