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Published Online February 2, 2006
Science DOI: 10.1126/science.1123632

Reports

Submitted on December 9, 2005
Accepted on January 26, 2006

Exposed Water Ice Deposits on the Surface of Comet Tempel 1

J. M. Sunshine 1*, M. F. A'Hearn 2, O. Groussin 2, J.-Y. Li 2, M. J. S. Belton 3, W. A. Delamere 4, J. Kissel 5, K. P. Klaasen 6, L. A. McFadden 2, K. J. Meech 7, H. J. Melosh 8, P. H. Schultz 9, P. C. Thomas 10, J. Veverka 10, D. K. Yeomans 6, I. C. Busko 11, M. Desnoyer 10, T. L. Farnham 2, L. M. Feaga 2, D. L. Hampton 12, D. J. Lindler 13, C. M. Lisse 14, D. D. Wellnitz 2

1 Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), Chantilly, VA, USA.
2 University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA.
3 Belton Space Exploration Initiatives, Tucson, AZ, USA.
4 Delamere Support Services, Boulder, CO, USA.
5 Max-Planck-Institute for Solar System Research, Katlenburg-Lindau, Germany.
6 Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, USA.
7 University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, USA.
8 University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA.
9 Brown University, Providence, RI, USA.
10 Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA.
11 Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, USA.
12 Ball Aerospace & Technology Corporation, Boulder, CO, USA.
13 Sigma Scientific, Greenbelt, MD, USA.
14 Applied Physics Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University, Laurel, MD, USA.

* To whom correspondence should be addressed.
J. M. Sunshine , E-mail: sunshinej{at}saic.com

We report the direct detection of solid water ice deposits exposed on the surface of comet 9P/Tempel 1, as observed by the Deep Impact mission. Three anomalously colored areas are shown to include water ice based on their near-infrared spectra, which include diagnostic water ice absorptions at 1.5 and 2.0 micrometers. These absorptions are well modeled as a mixture of nearby non-ice regions and 3 to 6% 10- to 50-micrometer-size water ice particles. These particle sizes are larger than those ejected during the impact experiment, suggesting that the surface deposits are loose aggregates. The total area of exposed water ice is significantly less than that required to support the observed ambient outgassing from the comet, which likely has additional source regions below the surface.


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Spitzer Spectral Observations of the Deep Impact Ejecta.
C. M. Lisse, J. VanCleve, A. C. Adams, M. F. A'Hearn, Y. R. Fernandez, T. L. Farnham, L. Armus, C. J. Grillmair, J. Ingalls, M. J. S. Belton, et al. (2006)
Science 313, 635-640
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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)