Sinfoni Observations Of Small Solar System Bodies: Application To The Asteroid Vesta And Pluto's Satellite Charon.

Details Sinfoni Observations Of Small Solar System Bodies: Application To The Asteroid Vesta And Pluto's Satellite Charon. Sinfoni Observations Of Small Solar System Bodies: Application To The Asteroid Vesta And Pluto's Satellite Charon.

Sep 2006

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2006dps....38.5905d&link_type=abstract

American Astronomical Society, DPS meeting #38, #59.05; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 38, p.593

Physics

Optics

Scientific paper

We recently started a program of observations of small solar system bodies using SINFONI, the new [1.0-2.5]mic near-infrared integral-field adaptive-optics-equipped spectrograph installed at the Cassegrain focus of the Yepun 8m telescope at the ESO-Paranal observatory. In this poster we will present our first results obtained on the surface of Pluto's satellite Charon and the large main-belt asteroid 4 Vesta. A separate presentation given at this DPS meeting by Merlin et al. will cover the results obtained on the large Trans-Neptunians Objects 2003 UB313 and 2003 EL61.
High-SNR reflectance spectra (R 1500) of Charon were obtained in 2005 across the H-K spectral bands for three separate orbital positions of the satellite corresponding to intermediate elongations from Pluto ( 0.6"). Combined with the published HST-NICMOS results, these data confirmed that the 2.21mic absorption band attributed to ammonia hydrate is present over the entire surface of Charon. We will present the complete analysis of our spectral data using Hapke models for bi-directional reflectance of solid ices.
We also observed the differentiated asteroid 4 Vesta with SINFONI across the J and H+K bands (R 3000 and 1500 respectively) at various rotational phases in order to map the distribution of minerals on its surface. The observations were obtained in August and October 2004, while the asteroid displayed an aspect angle close to 0 deg, and Vesta (angular diameter 0.5arcsec) was fully resolved by the system. The 3-D spectroscopic capabilities of SINFONI, combined with the availability of an adaptive optics mode, are perfectly adapted to carryout a detailed mineralogical study of the surface of small solar system bodies. We will present the results of mapping the variations in the strength and shape of the pyroxene and olivine bands across the surface of Vesta and how they compare with the HST results obtained during the 1994 opposition.

Affiliated with

Also associated with

No associations

Rating

Sinfoni Observations Of Small Solar System Bodies: Application To The Asteroid Vesta And Pluto's Satellite Charon. 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 Sinfoni Observations Of Small Solar System Bodies: Application To The Asteroid Vesta And Pluto's Satellite Charon., we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Sinfoni Observations Of Small Solar System Bodies: Application To The Asteroid Vesta And Pluto's Satellite Charon. will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

Comments { 0 }

Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-1077780