Discovery of a moon orbiting the asteroid 45 Eugenia

Merline, W. J.; Close, Laird M.; Dumas, Christophe; Chapman, C. R.; Roddier, F.; Ménard, F.; Slater, D. C.; Duvert, G.; Shelton, Chris; Morgan, Thomas

doi:10.1038/44089

Cited by 114 publications

(94 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…5a and 5b illustrate each step of the analysis. 45 Eugenia was the first binary system discovered from the ground (Merline et al, 1999). We observed this binary asteroid system on December 6, 2003 at 2 different epochs.…”

Section: Search For Moonlet Companionsmentioning

confidence: 89%

Shape, size and multiplicity of main-belt asteroidsI. Keck Adaptive Optics survey

Marchis

Kaasalainen

Hom

et al. 2006

Icarus

106

101

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This paper presents results from a high spatial resolution survey of 33 main-belt asteroids with diameters >40 km using the Keck II Adaptive Optics (AO) facility. Five of these (45 Eugenia, 87 Sylvia, 107 Camilla, 121 Hermione, 130 Elektra) were confirmed to have satellite. Assuming the same albedo as the primary, these moonlets are relatively small (∼5% of the primary size) suggesting that they are fragments captured after a disruptive collision of a parent body or captured ejecta due to an impact. For each asteroid, we have estimated the minimum size of a moonlet that can positively detected within the Hill sphere of the system by estimating and modeling a 2-σ detection profile: in average on the data set, a moonlet located at 2/100 × R Hill (1/4 × R Hill ) with a diameter larger than 6 km (4 km) would have been unambiguously seen. The apparent size and shape of each asteroid was estimated after deconvolution using a new algorithm called AIDA. The mean diameter for the majority of asteroids is in good agreement with IRAS radiometric measurements, though for asteroids with a D < 200 km, it is underestimated on average by 6-8%. Most asteroids had a size ratio that was very close to those determined by lightcurve measurements. One observation of 104 Klymene suggests it has a bifurcated shape. The bi-lobed shape of 121 Hermione described in Marchis et al. [Marchis, F., Hestroffer, D., Descamps, P., Berthier, J., Laver, C., de Pater, I., 2005c. Icarus 178, 450-464] was confirmed after deconvolution. The ratio of contact binaries in our survey, which is limited to asteroids larger than 40 km, is surprisingly high (∼6%), suggesting that a non-single configuration is common in the main-belt. Several asteroids have been analyzed with lightcurve inversions. We compared lightcurve inversion models for plane-of-sky predictions with the observed images (9 Metis, 52 Europa, 87 Sylvia, 130 Elektra, 192 Nausikaa, and 423 Diotima, 511 Davida). The AO images allowed us to determine a unique photometric mirror pole solution, which is normally ambiguous for asteroids moving close to the plane of the ecliptic (e.g., 192 Nausikaa and 52 Europa). The photometric inversion models agree well with the AO images, thus confirming the validity of both the lightcurve inversion method and the AO image reduction technique.

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Section: Search For Moonlet Companionsmentioning

confidence: 89%

Shape, size and multiplicity of main-belt asteroidsI. Keck Adaptive Optics survey

Marchis

Kaasalainen

Hom

et al. 2006

Icarus

106

101

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“…Antiope 3,7 . 87 Sylvia is classified, however, as an X-type asteroid 15 corresponding to an asteroid with a subtle absorption feature at 0.9 µm (tentatively interpreted as due to the presence of ortho-pyroxene), adjoining both the C-and S-types.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Discovery of the triple asteroidal system 87 Sylvia

Marchis

Descamps

Hestroffer

et al. 2005

Nature

105

124

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“…The masses of Ceres, Pallas and Vesta have been estimated from their influence on the motion of Mars (Standish & Hellings 1989). Other estimates of asteroid mass have been derived from analyses of the motion of moons around 145 Ida (Belton et al 1995) and 45 Eugenia (Merline et al 1999) or by analysing trajectory perturbations of the NEAR spacecraft flying by asteroid Mathilde (Yeomans et al 1997) or by spacecraft orbiting about the asteroids Eros (Yeomans et al 2000) and Itokawa (Abe et al 2006). A large fraction of asteroid mass derivations with various levels of precision were obtained from the analysis of the gravitational perturbations during close approaches between asteroids (Mouret et al 2007;.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pre-flyby estimates of the precision of the mass determination of asteroid (21) Lutetia from Rosetta radio tracking

Pätzold

Andert

Häusler

et al. 2010

A&A

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The Rosetta spacecraft will fly by its second target asteroid (21) Lutetia on 10 July 2010. Simulations based on the currently known size of Lutetia and assumptions on the bulk density show that tracking of two radio-carrier frequencies at X-band (8.4 GHz) and S -band (2.3 GHz) during the flyby will determine the mass at less than 1% accuracy. Derivation of the asteroid volume by camera observation will drive the uncertainty in derivation of the bulk density. Mass and bulk density provide valuable clues that might help resolve the difficulties in determining the taxonomic class of the asteroid.

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Discovery of a moon orbiting the asteroid 45 Eugenia

Cited by 114 publications

References 25 publications

Shape, size and multiplicity of main-belt asteroidsI. Keck Adaptive Optics survey

Shape, size and multiplicity of main-belt asteroidsI. Keck Adaptive Optics survey

Discovery of the triple asteroidal system 87 Sylvia

Pre-flyby estimates of the precision of the mass determination of asteroid (21) Lutetia from Rosetta radio tracking

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