Title

Imaging Borrelly

Keywords

19P/Borrelly; Borrelly; Coma; Comet; Deep Space 1; Dust jet; Imaging; Nucleus; Rotation axis; Rotation pole; Short-period comets; Topography

Abstract

The nucleus, coma, and dust jets of short-period Comet 19P/Borrelly were imaged from the Deep Space 1 spacecraft during its close flyby in September 2001. A prominent jet dominated the near-nucleus coma and emanated roughly normal to the long axis of nucleus from a broad central cavity. We show it to have remained fixed in position for more than 34 hr, much longer than the 26-hr rotation period. This confirms earlier suggestions that it is co-aligned with the rotation axis. From a combination of fitting the nucleus light curve from approach images and the nucleus' orientation from stereo images at encounter, we conclude that the sense of rotation is right-handed around the main jet vector. The inferred rotation pole is approximately perpendicular to the long axis of the nucleus, consistent with a simple rotational state. Lacking an existing IAU comet-specific convention but applying a convention provisionally adopted for asteroids, we label this the north pole. This places the sub-solar latitude at ∼60° N at the time of the perihelion with the north pole in constant sunlight and thus receiving maximum average insolation. © 2003 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Publication Date

1-1-2004

Publication Title

Icarus

Volume

167

Issue

1

Number of Pages

4-15

Document Type

Article

Personal Identifier

scopus

DOI Link

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.icarus.2003.07.008

Socpus ID

1642420568 (Scopus)

Source API URL

https://api.elsevier.com/content/abstract/scopus_id/1642420568

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