Mapping of HCN in the Coma of Comet C/1996 B2 Hyakutake

Details Mapping of HCN in the Coma of Comet C/1996 B2 Hyakutake Mapping of HCN in the Coma of Comet C/1996 B2 Hyakutake

Sep 1996

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1996dps....28.0919s&link_type=abstract

American Astronomical Society, DPS meeting #28, #09.19; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 28, p.1091

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astronomy

Scientific paper

We present maps of the HCN J=1-0 rotational transition in comet C/1996 B2 Hyakutake. The maps were obtained at the Five College Radio Astronomy Observatory using the 15-element QUARRY focal plane array. HCN emission was imaged over a 5' footprint with an angular resolution of 60" and a velocity resolution of 0.13 km/s. Throughout the period between March 21--31, 1996, during which the comet approached 0.1 AU from Earth, the HCN emission fills the mapped region, corresponding to approximately 20,000 km. An average map of the coma was prepared for each day, and significant features are apparent in each map. In addition, during the 10-day period, there was a progression in the line profile from single- to double-peaked lines. Model calculations suggest that significant inhomogeneities of HCN emission from the nucleus are necessary to reproduce these observed effects. Variations observed in the HCN maps are consistent with a small amount of jet activity, with perhaps 50 percent or less of the total HCN emission arising in the jet features. We present a series of maps and spectral lines for the days surrounding perigee, along with synthetic maps and spectra, and discuss a model for the evolution of the jet features.

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