Gray, Zuri;
Bagnulo, Stefano;
Granvik, Mikael;
Cellino, Alberto;
Jones, Geraint H;
Kolokolova, Ludmilla;
Moreno, Fernando;
... Snodgrass, Colin; + view all
(2024)
Polarimetry of Didymos–Dimorphos: Unexpected Long-term Effects of the DART Impact.
The Planetary Science Journal
, 5
(1)
, Article 18. 10.3847/psj/ad0f18.
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Abstract
We have monitored the Didymos–Dimorphos binary system in imaging polarimetric mode before and after the impact from the Double Asteroid Redirection Test mission. A previous spectropolarimetric study showed that the impact caused a dramatic drop in polarization. Our longer-term monitoring shows that the polarization of the post-impact system remains lower than the pre-impact system even months after the impact, suggesting that some fresh ejecta material remains in the system at the time of our observations, either in orbit or settled on the surface. The slope of the post-impact polarimetric curve is shallower than that of the pre-impact system, implying an increase in albedo of the system. This suggests that the ejected material is composed of smaller and possibly brighter particles than those present on the pre-impact surface of the asteroid. Our polarimetric maps show that the dust cloud ejected immediately after the impact polarizes light in a spatially uniform manner (and at a lower level than pre-impact). Later maps exhibit a gradient in polarization between the photocentre (which probes the asteroid surface) and the surrounding cloud and tail. The polarization occasionally shows some small-scale variations, the source of which is not yet clear. The polarimetric phase curve of Didymos–Dimorphos resembles that of the S-type asteroid class.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Polarimetry of Didymos–Dimorphos: Unexpected Long-term Effects of the DART Impact |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.3847/psj/ad0f18 |
| Publisher version: | http://dx.doi.org/10.3847/psj/ad0f18 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Original content from this work may be used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI. |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences > Dept of Space and Climate Physics |
| URI: | https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10186623 |
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