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Science 11 September 1987:
Vol. 237. no. 4820, pp. 1349 - 1351
DOI: 10.1126/science.237.4820.1349
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Articles

The Surface Composition of Charon: Tentative Identification of Water Ice

ROBERT L. MARCIALIS 1, GEORGE H. RIEKE 2, and LARRY A. LEBOFSKY 1

1 Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tuscon, AZ 85721
2 Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tuscon, AZ 85721., Steward Observatory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721.

The 3 March 1987 Charon occultation by Pluto was observed in the infrared at 1.5, 1.7, 2.0, and 2.35 micrometers. Subtraction of fluxes measured between second and third contacts from measurements made before and after the event has yielded individual spectral signatures for each body at these wavelengths. Charon's surface appears depleted in methane relative to Pluto. Constancy of flux at 2.0 micrometers throughout the event shows that Charon is effectively black at this wavelength, which is centered on a very strong water absorption band. Thus, the measurements suggest the existence of water ice on Pluto's moon.

Submitted on May 12, 1987
Accepted on July 27, 1987


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Evidence for Crystalline Water and Ammonia Ices on Pluto's Satellite Charon.
M. E. Brown and a. W. M. Calvin (2000)
Science 287, 107-109
   Abstract »    Full Text »
Surface Ices and the Atmospheric Composition of Pluto.
T. C. Owen, T. C. Owen, T. L. Roush, D. P. Cruikshank, J. L. Elliot, L. A. Young, C. de Bergh, B. Schmitt, T. R. Geballe, R. H. Brown, et al. (1993)
Science 261, 745-748
   Abstract »    PDF »
Hemispherical Color Differences on Pluto and Charon.
R. P. Binzel and R. P. BINZEL (1988)
Science 241, 1070-1072
   Abstract »    PDF »
IRAS Serendipitous Survey Observations of Pluto and Charon.
M. V. Sykes, M. V. SYKES, R. M. CUTRI, L. A. LEBOFSKY, and R. P. BINZEL (1987)
Science 237, 1336-1340
   Abstract »    PDF »


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