Infrared Photometry of a Statistically Significant Sample of KBOs

Details Infrared Photometry of a Statistically Significant Sample of KBOs Infrared Photometry of a Statistically Significant Sample of KBOs

Jul 2002

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2002hst..prop.9386n&link_type=abstract

HST Proposal ID #9386

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astrophysics

Hst Proposal Id #9386

Scientific paper

While the discovery rate of Kuiper Belt objects is accelerating, the physical study of this new region of the solar system has been slowed by a lack of basic astrophysical data. Photometric observations of the majority of the more than 400 known KBOs and Centaurs are rudimentary and incomplete, particularly in the infrared. The multicolor optical-infrared photometry that exists for a small subset of KBOs often shows significant discrepancies between observations by different observers. Their intrinsic faintness puts them at the practical limits of ground-based systems. In July 2001 we began what will be the largest uniform sample of optical photometry of KBOs with a WFPC2 SNAPSHOT program that will perform accurate photometry at V, R, and I on a sample of up to 150 targets. We seek to greatly enhance the value of this survey by obtaining J and H photometry on the same sample using NICMOS. Combined optical and infrared broad band photometry is a far more powerful tool for physical studies than is either alone. Our sample includes objects that will be observed at thermal infrared wavelengths by SIRTF and will be used with those data to derive the first accurate diameters, albedos, and surface properties for a large sample of KBOs.

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