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Imaging and Photometry of Comet C/1999 S4 (LINEAR) Before Perihelion and After Breakup
Tony L. Farnham,1*David G. Schleicher,2Laura M. Woodney,2Peter V. Birch,3Clara A. Eberhardy,4Lorenza Levy5
We analyzed photometric measurements and images of comet
C/LINEAR before perihelion and after its breakup. Results from ourphotometry data include a lower limit of 0.44 kilometer for theradius
of the nucleus before breakup, and a determination thatit was depleted
in carbon-chain molecules relative to most othercomets. Our imaging
and modeling results, which include a constrainton the rotational
state of the nucleus, indicate that the disintegrationlikely started
on 18 or 19 July 2000. The total mass detectablein the dust tail after
the breakup was 3 × 108 kilograms, comparable to one
of the fragments in the Hubble SpaceTelescope images; we therefore
infer that most of the comet'soriginal mass is hidden in remnants
between 1 millimeter and 50meters in diameter.
1 Department of Astronomy, University of Texas,
Austin, TX 78712, USA.
2 Lowell Observatory, 1400 West Mars Hill Road, Flagstaff, AZ 86001, USA.
3 Perth Observatory, Walnut Road, Bickley 6076, Western Australia.
4 Department of Astronomy,
University of Washington, Physics/Astronomy Building, Stevens Way, Box
351580, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
5 Department of
Physics and Astronomy, Northern Arizona University, Box 6010, Flagstaff, AZ 86011, USA.
*
To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail:
farnham{at}astro.as.utexas.edu
The editors suggest the following Related Resources on Science sites:
In Science Magazine
PERSPECTIVES
Hermann Boehnhardt (18 May 2001) Science292 (5520), 1307.
[DOI: 10.1126/science.1061654] |Summary »|Full Text »
REPORTS
H. A. Weaver, Z. Sekanina, I. Toth, C. E. Delahodde, O. R. Hainaut, P. L. Lamy, J. M. Bauer, M. F. A'Hearn, C. Arpigny, M. R. Combi, J. K. Davies, P. D. Feldman, M. C. Festou, R. Hook, L. Jorda, M. S. W. Keesey, C. M. Lisse, B. G. Marsden, K. J. Meech, G. P. Tozzi, and R. West (18 May 2001) Science292 (5520), 1329.
[DOI: 10.1126/science.1058606] |Abstract »|Full Text »|PDF »
REPORTS
M. J. Mumma, N. Dello Russo, M. A. DiSanti, K. Magee-Sauer, R. E. Novak, S. Brittain, T. Rettig, I. S. McLean, D. C. Reuter, and Li-H. Xu (18 May 2001) Science292 (5520), 1334.
[DOI: 10.1126/science.1058929] |Abstract »|Full Text »|PDF »
REPORTS
Dominique Bockelée-Morvan, Nicolas Biver, Raphaël Moreno, Pierre Colom, Jacques Crovisier, Éric Gérard, Florence Henry, Dariusz C. Lis, Henry Matthews, H. A. Weaver, Maria Womack, and Michel C. Festou (18 May 2001) Science292 (5520), 1339.
[DOI: 10.1126/science.1058512] |Abstract »|Full Text »|PDF »
REPORTS
C. M. Lisse, D. J. Christian, K. Dennerl, K. J. Meech, R. Petre, H. A. Weaver, and S. J. Wolk (18 May 2001) Science292 (5520), 1343.
[DOI: 10.1126/science.292.5520.1343] |Abstract »|Full Text »|PDF »|Supplemental Data »
THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Water Production of Comet C/1999 S4 (LINEAR) Observed with the SWAN Instrument.
J. T. T. Mäkinen, J.-L. Bertaux, M. R. Combi, and E. Quémerais (2001)
Science
292, 1326-1329
|Abstract »|Full Text »
HST and VLT Investigations of the Fragments of Comet C/1999 S4 (LINEAR).
H. A. Weaver, Z. Sekanina, I. Toth, C. E. Delahodde, O. R. Hainaut, P. L. Lamy, J. M. Bauer, M. F. A'Hearn, C. Arpigny, M. R. Combi, et al. (2001)
Science
292, 1329-1333
|Abstract »|Full Text »
Outgassing Behavior and Composition of Comet C/1999 S4 (LINEAR) During Its Disruption.
D. Bockelée-Morvan, N. Biver, R. Moreno, P. Colom, J. Crovisier, E. Gérard, F. Henry, D. C. Lis, H. Matthews, H. A. Weaver, et al. (2001)
Science
292, 1339-1343
|Abstract »|Full Text »
Charge Exchange-Induced X-Ray Emission from Comet C/1999 S4 (LINEAR).
C. M. Lisse, D. J. Christian, K. Dennerl, K. J. Meech, R. Petre, H. A. Weaver, and S. J. Wolk (2001)
Science
292, 1343-1348
|Abstract »|Full Text »
