Methane and Nitrogen Abundances on Pluto and Eris

Tegler, S. C.; Cornelison, D. M.; Grundy, W. M.; Romanishin, W.; Abernathy, M. R.; Bovyn, Matthew J.; Burt, J. A.; Evans, D. E.; Maleszewski, C.; Thompson, Z.; Vilas, F.

doi:10.1088/0004-637x/725/1/1296

Cited by 64 publications

(58 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…Near-IR spectroscopy (Tegler et al 2010;Merlin et al 2009;Brown et al 2005) indicates that Eris' surface composition is very similar to Pluto's, with the presence of methane ice along with another dominant ice, presumably nitrogen, suggestive of a high albedo. Prior to our measurements, Eris' size and albedo have been determined by several groups and methods.…”

Section: Ormentioning

confidence: 94%

“TNOs are Cool”: A survey of the trans-Neptunian region

Santos-Sanz

Lellouch

Fornasier

et al. 2012

A&A

145

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Context. Physical characterization of trans-Neptunian objects, a primitive population of the outer solar system, may provide constraints on their formation and evolution. Aims. The goal of this work is to characterize a set of 15 scattered disk (SDOs) and detached objects, in terms of their size, albedo, and thermal properties. Methods. Thermal flux measurements obtained with the Herschel-PACS instrument at 70, 100 and 160 μm, and whenever applicable, with Spitzer-MIPS at 24 and 70 μm, are modeled with radiometric techniques, in order to derive the objects' individual size, albedo and when possible beaming factor. Error bars are obtained from a Monte-Carlo approach. We look for correlations between these and other physical and orbital parameters. Results. Diameters obtained for our sample range from 100 to 2400 km, and the geometric albedos (in V band) vary from 3.8% to 84.5%. The unweighted mean V geometric albedo for the whole sample is 11.2% (excluding Eris); 6.9% for the SDOs, and 17.0% for the detached objects (excluding Eris). We obtain new bulk densities for three binary systems: Ceto/Phorcys, Typhon/Echidna and Eris/Dysnomia. Apart from correlations clearly due to observational bias, we find significant correlations between albedo and diameter (more reflective objects being bigger), and between albedo, diameter and perihelion distance (brighter and bigger objects having larger perihelia). We discuss possible explanations for these correlations.

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Section: Ormentioning

confidence: 94%

“TNOs are Cool”: A survey of the trans-Neptunian region

Santos-Sanz

Lellouch

Fornasier

et al. 2012

A&A

145

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“…Close examination of CH 4 bands shows they consist of two components, interpreted as being due to absorption by CH 4 ice itself plus a blue-shifted version of the same band attributed to CH 4 diluted in N 2 ice (e.g., Quirico and Schmitt 1997;Douté et al 1999). Tegler et al (2010Tegler et al ( , 2012 pointed out that two such components can co-exist under conditions of thermodynamic equilibrium if CH 4 exceeds its solubility limit in N 2 (about 5% molar concentration of CH 4 in N 2 ice at 40K) and that the two phases present under such circumstances would be N 2 ice saturated with CH 4 and also CH 4 ice saturated with N 2 at its solubility limit (about 3% N 2 in CH 4 ice at 40K). The solubility limit compositions are functions of temperature (e.g., Prokhvatilov and Yantsevich 1983;Lunine and Stevenson 1985), but assuming thermodynamic equilibrium at a given temperature, the ratio of N 2 to CH 4 dictates the relative abundances of the two phases.…”

Section: Evolving N 2 and Co Ice Absorptionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Near-infrared spectral monitoring of Pluto’s ices II: Recent decline of CO and N2 ice absorptions

Grundy¹,

Olkin²,

Young³

et al. 2014

Icarus

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IRTF/SpeX observations of Pluto's near-infrared reflectance spectrum during 2013 show vibrational absorption features of CO and N 2 ices at 1.58 and 2.15 µm, respectively, that are weaker than had been observed during the preceding decade. To reconcile declining volatile ice absorptions with a lack of decline in Pluto's atmospheric pressure, we suggest these ices could be getting harder to see because of increasing scattering by small CH 4 crystals, rather than because they are disappearing from the observed hemisphere.

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“…Abernathy et al (2009) compared their spectra with those of Licandro et al (2006), finding different central wavelengths and different depths for a few selected methane absorption bands. Nevertheless, recent results point in another direction: Tegler et al (2010), using their own results and those of Quirico & Schmitt (1997a), showed that a single component, CH 4 diluted in N 2 , could explain the wavelength shifts because those shifts increase with increasing wavelength.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The spectrum of (136199) Eris between 350 and 2350 nm: results with X-Shooter

Álvarez-Candal

Pinilla-Alonso

Licandro

et al. 2011

A&A

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Context. X-Shooter is the first second-generation instrument for the ESO-Very Large Telescope. It is a spectrograph covering the entire 300−2480 nm spectral range at once with a high resolving power. These properties enticed us to observe the well-known transNeptunian object (136199) Eris during the science verification of the instrument. The target has numerous absorption features in the optical and near-infrared domain that have been observed by different authors, showing differences in these features' positions and strengths. Aims. Besides testing the capabilities of X-Shooter to observe minor bodies, we attempt to constrain the existence of super-volatiles, e.g., CH 4 , CO and N 2 , and in particular we try to understand the physical-chemical state of the ices on Eris' surface. Methods. We observed Eris in the 300−2480 nm range and compared the newly obtained spectra with those available in the literature. We identified several absorption features, measured their positions and depth, and compare them with those of the reflectance of pure methane ice obtained from the optical constants of this ice at 30 K to study shifts in these features' positions and find a possible explanation for their origin. Results. We identify several absorption bands in the spectrum that are all consistent with the presence of CH 4 ice. We do not identify bands related to N 2 or CO. We measured the central wavelengths of the bands and compared to those measured in the spectrum of pure CH 4 at 30 K finding variable spectral shifts. Conclusions. Based on these wavelength shifts, we confirm the presence of a dilution of CH 4 in other ice on the surface of Eris and the presence of pure CH 4 that is spatially segregated. The comparison of the centers and shapes of these bands with previous works suggests that the surface is heterogeneous. The absence of the 2160 nm band of N 2 can be explained if the surface temperature is below 35.6 K, the transition temperature between the alpha and beta phases of this ice. Our results, including the reanalysis of data published elsewhere, point to a heterogeneous surface on Eris.

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Methane and Nitrogen Abundances on Pluto and Eris

Cited by 64 publications

References 23 publications

“TNOs are Cool”: A survey of the trans-Neptunian region

“TNOs are Cool”: A survey of the trans-Neptunian region

Near-infrared spectral monitoring of Pluto’s ices II: Recent decline of CO and N2 ice absorptions

The spectrum of (136199) Eris between 350 and 2350 nm: results with X-Shooter

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