THE DUST TAIL OF ASTEROID (3200) PHAETHON

We report the discovery of a comet-like tail on asteroid (3200) Phaethon when imaged at optical wavelengths near perihelion. In both 2009 and 2012, the tail appears [> ~]350" (2.5 x 10 super(8) m) in length and extends approximately in the projected anti-solar direction. We interpret the tai...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inAstrophysical journal. Letters Vol. 771; no. 2; pp. 1 - 5
Main Authors Jewitt, David, Li, Jing, Agarwal, Jessica
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States 10.07.2013
Subjects
ASTEROIDS
ASTRONOMY
ASTROPHYSICS
ASTROPHYSICS, COSMOLOGY AND ASTRONOMY
Brightening
COMETS
COSMIC DUST
CRACKING
Cracking (fracturing)
DETECTION
Dust
Fracture mechanics
MASS
METEORITES
METEOROIDS
MORPHOLOGY
PARTICLES
Perihelions
PLANETS
SOLAR RADIATION
Surface temperature
SURFACES
THERMAL FRACTURES
Wavelengths
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Summary:We report the discovery of a comet-like tail on asteroid (3200) Phaethon when imaged at optical wavelengths near perihelion. In both 2009 and 2012, the tail appears [> ~]350" (2.5 x 10 super(8) m) in length and extends approximately in the projected anti-solar direction. We interpret the tail as being caused by dust particles accelerated by solar radiation pressure. The sudden appearance and the morphology of the tail indicate that the dust particles are small, with an effective radius ~1 mu m and a combined mass ~3 x 10 super(5) kg. These particles are likely products of thermal fracture and/or desiccation cracking under the very high surface temperatures (~1000 K) experienced by Phaethon at perihelion. The existence of the tail confirms earlier inferences about activity in this body based on the detection of anomalous brightening. Phaethon, the presumed source of the Geminid meteoroids, is still active.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-2
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ISSN:2041-8205
2041-8213
DOI:10.1088/2041-8205/771/2/L36