Polarimetric Properties of Transneptunian Objects and Centaurs

Details Polarimetric Properties of Transneptunian Objects and Centaurs Polarimetric Properties of Transneptunian Objects and Centaurs

Sep 2008

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2008dps....40.4707b&link_type=abstract

American Astronomical Society, DPS meeting #40, #47.07; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 40, p.482

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astronomy

1

Scientific paper

We present preliminary results of polarimetric observations of the selected Centaurs and transneptunian objects (TNOs) obtained in November 2006 - July 2008 within the ESO-VLT Large Program. Measurements of the linear polarization of 7 objects were made with the FORS1 instrument in the Bessell R filter at different phase angles covering the maximum possible range. The main results can be summarized as following:
1. All observed objects revealed noticeable negative polarization of their surfaces varying from -0.3% to -2% in the phase angle range from 0.1 to 4.4 deg.
2. Two classical TNOs (20000) Varuna and (38628) Huya and a scattered disk object 26375 (1999 DE9) showed similar polarimetric properties of their surfaces within the accuracy of our measurements (typically 0.1%). They are characterized by a pronounced branch of negative polarization changing rapidly with phase angles and reaching -1% at the phase angle of 1 deg. Similar polarization behavior was previously found for a resonant object (28978) Ixion (Boehnhardt et al., A&A 415, L21, 2004). It suggests rather similar surface texture of all these TNOs markedly different from that of asteroids and cometary dust.
3. The minimum of the negative polarization branch was measured for two Centaurs. For (2060) Chiron the minimum polarization reaches -1.4% and occurs at phase angle 1.6 deg while for (5145) Pholus the minimum polarization is -2% at phase angle 2.1 deg. The third Centaur in our sample (10199) Chariklo observed in the phase angle range 2.6-4.4 deg is characterized by a less pronounced negative polarization of -0.9%. Such a great diversity in polarization properties found for Centaurs assumes noticeable differences in the physical properties of their topmost surface layers.

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