Hostname: page-component-7b7567c8c-tnzcf Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2026-11-15T08:25:13.244Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

An Update on The Problem of Small Comets

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 August 2015

J.C. Brandt and
M.F. A’Hearn
J.C. Brandt
Affiliation:
Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder CO USA
M.F. A’Hearn
Affiliation:
Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park MD, USA

Extract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the 'Save PDF' action button.

The evidence for a major population of small comets (SCs) is summarized in two steps. First, we briefly summarize our previous work. Second, we describe recent work that continues to find SCs. When new capabilities become available that can detect SCs, we expect to find them and this is occurring. At present, their detection is a haphazard process and we advocate a dedicated, optimized search program.

We define SCs as those icy bodies (i.e., sublimating bodies) with radius less than 1000 meters. Often the existence of SCs is inferred from effects ascribed to them. These “effects” include: lunar cratering; cratering on Ganymede; excess interplanetary hydrogen; delivery of volatile materials to the terrestrial planets; and a source of fragile bodies entering the Earth’s atmosphere. While some of these indirect methods support the existence of SCs, direct observations are clearly preferred.

References

Asher, D.J., Bailey, M.E., Hahn, G., and Steel, D.I., (1994) Asteroid 5335 Damocles and its Implications for Cometary Dynamics, MNRAS, 267, 26–42 Google Scholar
Brandt, J.C., A’Hearn, M.F., Randall, C.E., Schleicher, D.G., Shoemaker, E.M., and Stewart, A.I.F. (1996) On the Existence of Small Comets and their Interactions with Planets, Earth, Moon, and Planets, 72, 243–249 Google Scholar
Brandt, J.C., A’Hearn, M.F., Randall, C.E., Schleicher, D.G., Shoemaker, E.M., and Stewart, A.I.F. (1997) Small Comets (SCs): An Unstudied Population in the Solar System Inventory, in Completing the Inventory of the Solar System, ASP Conference Series, 107, Rettig, T.W. and Hahn, J.M., eds., pp. 289–297 Google Scholar
Frank, L.A., and Sigwarth, J.B. (1997a) Transient Decreases of Earth’s Far-Ultraviolet Dayglow, Geophys. Res. Letters, 24, 2423–2426 Google Scholar
Frank, L.A., and Sigwarth, J.B. (1997b) Simultaneous Observations of Transient Decreases of Earth’s Far-Ultraviolet Dayglow with Two Cameras, Geophys. Res. Letters, 24, 2427–2430 Google Scholar
Frank, L.A., and Sigwarth, J.B. (1997c) Detection of Atomic Oxygen Trails of Small Comets in the Vicinity of the Earth, Geophys. Res. Letters, 24, 2431–2434 Google Scholar
Frank, L.A., and Sigwarth, J.B. (1997d) Trails of OH Emissions from Small Comets Near Earth, Geophys. Res. Letters, 24, 2435–2438 Google Scholar
Hanner, M.S., Newburn, R.L., Spinrad, H., and Veeder, G.J. (1987) Comet Sugano-Saigusa-Fujikawa (1983 V) - A Small, Puzzling Comet, Astron. J., 94, 1081–1087 Google Scholar
Lamy, P.I., Toth, I., Jorda, L., Weaver, H.A., and A’Hearn, M. (1997a) The Nucleus and Inner Coma of Comet 46P/Wirtanen, submitted to Astron. Astrophys. special Comet Wirtanen issueGoogle Scholar
Lamy, P.I., Toth, I., A’Hearn, M. and Weaver, H.A. (1997b) Hubble Space Telescope Observations of the Nucleus of Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdušáková and Its Inner Coma, submitted to Icarus Google Scholar
Marsden, B.G. (1989) The Sungrazing Comet Group. II Astron. 98, 2306–2321 Google Scholar
Roemer, E. (1966) The Dimensions of Cometary Nuclei, in Nature et Origine des Comètes, Mém. Soc. Roy. Sci. Liège, Tome XII, 23–28 Google Scholar
Yeomans, D.K. (1991) Comets, Wiley & Sons New York-Chichester-Brisbane-Toronto-Singapore.Google Scholar