Establishing Earth’s Minimoon Population through Characterization of Asteroid 2020 CD3

Autor: Kacper Wierzchoś, Tom Seccull, Nicholas Moskovitz, Quanzhi Ye, Maxime Devogele, Marco Micheli, Grigori Fedorets, Adam B. Smith, Davide Farnocchia, Robert Weryk, Joel Roediger, Megan E. Schwamb, Richard J. Wainscoat, Theodore Pruyne, Mikael Granvik, Anlaug Amanda Djupvik, Eric Christensen, Shantanu P. Naidu, Laura E. Buchanan, William F. Bottke, Dora Fohring, Daniel M. Faes, Robert Jedicke
Přispěvatelé: Department of Physics, Planetary-system research, Particle Physics and Astrophysics
Rok vydání: 2020
Předmět:
Rotation period
010504 meteorology & atmospheric sciences
Light curves
PHASE FUNCTION
Near-Earth objects
01 natural sciences
Orbit determination
Earth-moon system
Planet
Observatory
Annan elektroteknik och elektronik
010303 astronomy & astrophysics
FRAGMENTS
Earth and Planetary Astrophysics (astro-ph.EP)
Physics
education.field_of_study
Near-Earth object
Astrometry
ORBIT
Asteroids
TARGET
Asteroid
OBJECTS
Population
FOS: Physical sciences
0103 physical sciences
DISTRIBUTIONS
education
RADIATION PRESSURE
0105 earth and related environmental sciences
Other Electrical Engineering
Electronic Engineering
Information Engineering
Broad band photometry
Astronomy
Astronomy and Astrophysics
115 Astronomy
Space science
Transient sources
Space and Planetary Science
DENSITY
Natural satellite
SATELLITES
PLANETS
Astrophysics - Earth and Planetary Astrophysics
Zdroj: Fedorets, G, Micheli, M, Jedicke, R, Naidu, S P, Farnocchia, D, Granvik, M, Moskovitz, N, Schwamb, M E, Weryk, R, Wierzchoś, K, Christensen, E, Pruyne, T, Bottke, W F, Ye, Q, Wainscoat, R, Devogèle, M, Buchanan, L E, Djupvik, A A, Faes, D M, Föhring, D, Roediger, J, Seccull, T & Smith, A B 2020, ' Establishing Earth's Minimoon Population through Characterization of Asteroid 2020 CD3 ', Astronomical Journal, vol. 160, no. 6 . https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-3881/abc3bc
ISSN: 1538-3881
0004-6256
Popis: We report on our detailed characterization of Earth's second known temporary natural satellite, or minimoon, asteroid 2020 CD3. An artificial origin can be ruled out based on its area-to-mass ratio and broadband photometry, which suggest that it is a silicate asteroid belonging to the S or V complex in asteroid taxonomy. The discovery of 2020 CD3 allows for the first time a comparison between known minimoons and theoretical models of their expected physical and dynamical properties. The estimated diameter of 1.2+0.4-0.2 m and geocentric capture approximately a decade after the first known minimoon, 2006 RH120, are in agreement with theoretical predictions. The capture duration of 2020 CD3 of at least 2.7 yr is unexpectedly long compared to the simulation average, but it is in agreement with simulated minimoons that have close lunar encounters, providing additional support for the orbital models. 2020 CD3's atypical rotation period, significantly longer than theoretical predictions, suggests that our understanding of meter-scale asteroids needs revision. More discoveries and a detailed characterization of the population can be expected with the forthcoming Vera C. Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time.
22 pages, 6 Figures, 5 Tables, to appear in the Astronomical Journal
Databáze: OpenAIRE
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