Work

The Extraordinary Multi-tailed Main-belt Comet P/2013 P5

Year: 2013

Type: article

Abstract: Hubble Space Telescope observations of main-belt comet P/2013 P5 reveal an extraordinary system of six dust tails that distinguish this object from any other. Observations two weeks apart show dramatic morphological change in the tails while providing no evidence for secular fading of the object as a whole. Each tail is associated with a unique ejection date, revealing continued, episodic mass loss from the 0.24 ± 0.04 km radius nucleus over the last five months. As an inner-belt asteroid and probable Flora family member, the object is likely to be highly metamorphosed and unlikely to contain ice. The protracted period of dust release appears inconsistent with an impact origin, but may be compatible with a body that is losing mass through a rotational instability. We suggest that P/2013 P5 has been accelerated to breakup speed by radiation torques.

Source: The Astrophysical Journal Letters

DOI: 10.1088/2041-8205/778/1/l21

Authors: David Jewitt, Jessica Agarwal, Harold Weaver, Max Mutchler, Stephen Larson

Institutions: University of California, Los Angeles, Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Space Telescope Science Institute, University of Arizona

Language: English

Topic: Astro and Planetary Science

Subfield: Space and Planetary Science

Field: Earth and Planetary Sciences

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: bronze

Funders: National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Space Telescope Science Institute

Awards: G433322167, G4518818167, G58316358, G6273510985, G767601387