Solar system astronomy with the 3.6-m DOT and the 4-m ILMT

Abstract

Solar system astronomy would be an important field of study with the 3.6-m Devasthal Optical Telescope (DOT) and the 4-m International Liquid Mirror Telescope (ILMT). In this contribution, we highlight the work that could be done in reaching a better understanding of the Solar system and its constituents - particularly the minor bodies and other smaller objects. There may be a large number of very faint objects in the vicinity of the Earth orbit. In fact only recently a 'second moon' of the Earth has been found and has been designated 2016 H03. This is a quasi-satellite with the same period of revolution around Earth and Sun. There could be many such objects and it is important to have a full characterization and understanding of these potentially hazardous objects. They are generally fainter than 18th magnitude and one would need a lot of telescope time to fully characterize these objects using techniques of spectropolarimetry. In a similar fashion, a deep census of the Kuiper Belt Objects and the TNOs is needed. In this census, the concept of pencil beam surveys could be extended to cylindrical transit imaging technique available with the 4-m ILMT.