Candidate Main-belt Asteroids for Surface Heterogeneity
Large terrestrial bodies in our solar system like the Earth, Mars, Mercury, and the Moon exhibit geologically complex surfaces with compositional heterogeneity. From past studies using large telescopes and spacecraft, it was shown that asteroids with diameters larger than 100 km also show surface he...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IOP Publishing
2024-01-01
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| Series: | The Astronomical Journal |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-3881/ad3045 |
| _version_ | 1797202389860614144 |
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| author | Sunao Hasegawa Michaël Marsset Francesca E. DeMeo Josef Hanuš Richard P. Binzel Schelte J. Bus Brian Burt David Polishook Cristina A. Thomas Jooyeon Geem Masateru Ishiguro Daisuke Kuroda Pierre Vernazza |
| author_facet | Sunao Hasegawa Michaël Marsset Francesca E. DeMeo Josef Hanuš Richard P. Binzel Schelte J. Bus Brian Burt David Polishook Cristina A. Thomas Jooyeon Geem Masateru Ishiguro Daisuke Kuroda Pierre Vernazza |
| author_sort | Sunao Hasegawa |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Large terrestrial bodies in our solar system like the Earth, Mars, Mercury, and the Moon exhibit geologically complex surfaces with compositional heterogeneity. From past studies using large telescopes and spacecraft, it was shown that asteroids with diameters larger than 100 km also show surface heterogeneity at hemispheric scales, while on smaller objects, such features remain to be detected. Here, we investigate candidates for surface heterogeneity in a sample of 130 main-belt asteroids using multiepoch spectroscopic data from the MIT–Hawaii Near-Earth Object Spectroscopic Survey, which has been observing asteroids for about 20 yr using a self-consistent observation technique. Twelve conservative candidates with spectra more than 3 σ apart from each other at 2.4 μ m and 52 optimistic candidates for surface heterogeneity are detected. These candidates include eight objects already reported as being heterogeneous. Our study suggests that the size boundary between small homogeneous asteroids and larger heterogeneous objects, if it exists, is lower than 100 km. A-type asteroids have a higher proportion of heterogeneous candidates than other asteroids. This may be because olivine, which is the main surface constituent of these objects, reacts more efficiently to space weathering with respect to pyroxene, such that a similar range of surface ages will translate into a wider range of optical-to-near-infrared spectral slopes in the case of A-type bodies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T08:02:40Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-5e3f681a210e49f1900c43d3e9ccff8c |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1538-3881 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T08:02:40Z |
| publishDate | 2024-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | The Astronomical Journal |
| spelling | doaj.art-5e3f681a210e49f1900c43d3e9ccff8c2024-04-17T16:33:25ZengIOP PublishingThe Astronomical Journal1538-38812024-01-01167522410.3847/1538-3881/ad3045Candidate Main-belt Asteroids for Surface HeterogeneitySunao Hasegawa0https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6366-2608Michaël Marsset1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8617-2425Francesca E. DeMeo2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8397-4219Josef Hanuš3https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2934-3723Richard P. Binzel4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9995-7341Schelte J. Bus5https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4191-6536Brian Burt6https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6423-0716David Polishook7https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6977-3146Cristina A. Thomas8https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3091-5757Jooyeon Geem9https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3291-4056Masateru Ishiguro10https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7332-2479Daisuke Kuroda11https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7363-187XPierre Vernazza12https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2564-6743Institute of Space and Astronautical Science , Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, 3-1-1 Yoshinodai, Chuo-ku, Sagamihara, Kanagawa 252-5210, Japan ; hasehase@isas.jaxa.jpEuropean Southern Observatory (ESO) , Alonso de Córdova 3107, 1900 Casilla Vitacura, Santiago, Chile; Department of Earth , Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, MIT, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USADepartment of Earth , Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, MIT, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USACharles University , Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Institute of Astronomy, V Holešovičkách 2, CZ-18000, Prague 8, Czech RepublicDepartment of Earth , Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, MIT, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USAInstitute for Astronomy, University of Hawaii , 2860 Woodlawn Drive, Honolulu, HI 96822-1839, USADepartment of Earth , Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, MIT, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Lowell Observatory , 1400 West Mars Hill Road, Flagstaff, AZ 86001, USAFaculty of Physics, Weizmann Institute of Science, 76100 Rehovot, IsraelDepartment of Astronomy and Planetary Science, Northern Arizona University , NAU Box 6010, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USADepartment of Physics and Astronomy, Seoul National University , Gwanak-gu, Seoul 08826, Republic of Korea; SNU Astronomy Research Center, Seoul National University , Gwanak-gu, Seoul 08826, Republic of KoreaDepartment of Physics and Astronomy, Seoul National University , Gwanak-gu, Seoul 08826, Republic of Korea; SNU Astronomy Research Center, Seoul National University , Gwanak-gu, Seoul 08826, Republic of KoreaJapan Spaceguard Association, Bisei Spaceguard Center 1716-3 Okura , Bisei, Ibara, Okayama 714-1411, JapanAix Marseille Université , CNRS, CNES, Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Marseille, Marseille, FranceLarge terrestrial bodies in our solar system like the Earth, Mars, Mercury, and the Moon exhibit geologically complex surfaces with compositional heterogeneity. From past studies using large telescopes and spacecraft, it was shown that asteroids with diameters larger than 100 km also show surface heterogeneity at hemispheric scales, while on smaller objects, such features remain to be detected. Here, we investigate candidates for surface heterogeneity in a sample of 130 main-belt asteroids using multiepoch spectroscopic data from the MIT–Hawaii Near-Earth Object Spectroscopic Survey, which has been observing asteroids for about 20 yr using a self-consistent observation technique. Twelve conservative candidates with spectra more than 3 σ apart from each other at 2.4 μ m and 52 optimistic candidates for surface heterogeneity are detected. These candidates include eight objects already reported as being heterogeneous. Our study suggests that the size boundary between small homogeneous asteroids and larger heterogeneous objects, if it exists, is lower than 100 km. A-type asteroids have a higher proportion of heterogeneous candidates than other asteroids. This may be because olivine, which is the main surface constituent of these objects, reacts more efficiently to space weathering with respect to pyroxene, such that a similar range of surface ages will translate into a wider range of optical-to-near-infrared spectral slopes in the case of A-type bodies.https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-3881/ad3045Small Solar System bodiesAsteroidsMain belt asteroidsAsteroid surfaces |
| spellingShingle | Sunao Hasegawa Michaël Marsset Francesca E. DeMeo Josef Hanuš Richard P. Binzel Schelte J. Bus Brian Burt David Polishook Cristina A. Thomas Jooyeon Geem Masateru Ishiguro Daisuke Kuroda Pierre Vernazza Candidate Main-belt Asteroids for Surface Heterogeneity The Astronomical Journal Small Solar System bodies Asteroids Main belt asteroids Asteroid surfaces |
| title | Candidate Main-belt Asteroids for Surface Heterogeneity |
| title_full | Candidate Main-belt Asteroids for Surface Heterogeneity |
| title_fullStr | Candidate Main-belt Asteroids for Surface Heterogeneity |
| title_full_unstemmed | Candidate Main-belt Asteroids for Surface Heterogeneity |
| title_short | Candidate Main-belt Asteroids for Surface Heterogeneity |
| title_sort | candidate main belt asteroids for surface heterogeneity |
| topic | Small Solar System bodies Asteroids Main belt asteroids Asteroid surfaces |
| url | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-3881/ad3045 |
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