Radar Imaging of Binary Near-Earth Asteroid 2004 DC

Details Radar Imaging of Binary Near-Earth Asteroid 2004 DC Radar Imaging of Binary Near-Earth Asteroid 2004 DC

Sep 2006

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2006dps....38.5004t&link_type=abstract

American Astronomical Society, DPS meeting #38, #50.04; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 38, p.577

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astronomy

3

Scientific paper

Arecibo S-band (2380 MHz, 13 cm) and Goldstone X-band (8560 MHz, 3.5 cm) radar observations on June 2-6, 2006 show that Apollo asteroid 2004 DC is a binary system [IAU CBET 535]. Preliminary estimates of the diameters, based on visible range extents in the delay-Doppler images, are 300 m for the primary and 60 m for the secondary. The motion of the secondary in the delay-Doppler images suggests an orbital period of roughly 23 hours and a maximum primary-to-secondary separation of at least 0.6 km. The bandwidth of the primary increases from May 29 to June 3, then decreases until the end of observations on June 6, implying 2004 DC was viewed closest to equatorial on June 3. Assuming an equatorial view, the bandwidth suggests a rotation period of about 2 hours, which is in agreement with lightcurve observations [R. Behrend, pers. comm.]. The radar albedo and circular polarization ratio are 0.4 and 0.8 at S-band and 0.3 and unity at X-band. The circular polarization ratios are larger than those of the majority of radar-observed asteroids and imply that 2004 DC has extreme decimeter-scale near-surface roughness. We will estimate the parameters of the mutual orbit and the shape of the primary, and will place the orbital and physical properties of the system into the context of the existing binary near-Earth asteroid population.

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