Comets in the near-Earth object population

Because the lifespan of near-Earth objects (NEOs) is shorter than the age of the solar system, these objects originated elsewhere and they must have a source of re-supply. We seek to determine what fraction of the NEO population consists of dormant or extinct comets. We identify comet candidates among NEOs using three criteria: the Jovian Tisserand parameter Tj < 3, comet nucleus-like spectral parameters (generally linear spectra which correspond to C, D, or P taxonomic types), and low (<0.075) albedos. Out of 31 objects we sample having Tj < 3, we find 17 objects or approximately 55% also satisfy these comet candidate criteria. Bias corrected discovery statistics (Stuart 2003, Ph.D. thesis; Stuart & Binzel 2004, Icarus 170, 295) estimate 30% of the entire NEO population resides in orbits having a value of Tj < 3. Combining these two factors suggests that approximately 16% of the total NEO population has both dynamical and physical properties consistent with a cometary origin.

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences.

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2006

Author dc:creator

• DeMeo, Francesca E

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Richard P. Binzel.

• Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences.

Statement dc:rights

• MIT theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed, downloaded, or printed from this source but further reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/114322

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/114322