Abstract. Seven recently detected optically "bright" Kuiper-Belt-Objects (KBOs) were observed at 250 GHz using the Max-Planck Millimeter Bolometer (MAMBO) array at the IRAM 30 m telescope. Only the optical binary KBO (47 171) 1999 TC36 was detected, whose components differ optically by ∆m ≈ 2 mag. Assuming that the derived mean geometric albedo of p = 0.05 is identical for both, the component diameters become 566 and 225 km. For the other six objects upper limits to their sizes and lower limits for their albedos were obtained. The geometric albedo, p, for (28978) Ixion is surprisingly large, ≥0.15. For a consistent comparison all published radio photometric data of KBOs and Centaurs were analyzed again: the average geometric albedo is found to be ≈0.08.
Based on millimeter-wavelength continuum observations we suggest that the recent "spectacle" of comet 17P/Holmes can be explained by a thick, air-tight dust cover and the effects of H 2 O sublimation, which started when the comet arrived at the heliocentric distance ≤2.5 AU. The porous structure inside the nucleus provided enough surface for additional sublimation, which eventually led to the break up of the dust cover and to the observed outburst. The magnitude of the particle burst can be explained by the energy provided by insolation, stored in the dust cover and the nucleus within the months before the outburst: the subliming surface within the nucleus is more than one order of magnitude larger than the geometric surface of the nucleus -possibly an indication of the latter's porous structure. Another surprise is that the abundance ratios of several molecular species with respect to H 2 O are variable. During this apparition, comet Holmes lost about 3% of its mass, corresponding to a "dirty ice" layer of 20 m.
The most distant known object in the Solar System, 2003 UB313 (97 au from the Sun), was recently discovered near its aphelion. Its high eccentricity and inclination to the ecliptic plane, along with its perihelion near the orbit of Neptune, identify it as a member of the 'scattered disk'. This disk of bodies probably originates in the Kuiper belt objects, which orbit near the ecliptic plane in circular orbits between 30 and 50 au, and may include Pluto as a member. The optical brightness of 2003 UB313, if adjusted to Pluto's distance, is greater than that of Pluto, which suggested that it might be larger than Pluto. The actual size, however, could not be determined from the optical measurements because the surface reflectivity (albedo) was unknown. Here we report observations of the thermal emission of 2003 UB313 at a wavelength of 1.2 mm, which in combination with the measured optical brightness leads to a diameter of 3,000 +/- 300 +/- 100 km. Here the first error reflects measurement uncertainties, while the second derives from the unknown object orientation. This makes 2003 UB313 the largest known trans-neptunian object, even larger than Pluto (2,300 km). The albedo is 0.60 +/- 0.10 +/- 0.05, which is strikingly similar to that of Pluto, suggesting that the methane seen in the optical spectrum causes a highly reflective icy surface.
Abstract. Using the Max-Planck Millimeter Bolometer Array (MAMBO) at the IRAM 30 m telescope we detected emission at 250 GHz from the Centaur Chariklo (1997 CU26). The observed continuum flux density implies a photometric diameter of 273 km. The resulting geometric albedo is 0.055, somewhat higher than expected from a comparison with most of the other few Centaurs and cometary nuclei for which such data are available.
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