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Science 18 June 2004:
Vol. 304. no. 5678, pp. 1776 - 1780
DOI: 10.1126/science.1098759
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Reports

Dust Measurements in the Coma of Comet 81P/Wild 2 by the Dust Flux Monitor Instrument

Anthony J. Tuzzolino,1 Thanasis E. Economou,1* Ben C. Clark,2 Peter Tsou,3 Donald E. Brownlee,4 Simon F. Green,5 J. A. M. McDonnell,5 Neil McBride,5 Melusine T. S. H. Colwell5

We present measurements of the dust particle flux and mass distribution from the Stardust Dust Flux Monitor Instrument (DFMI) throughout the flyby of comet 81P/Wild 2. In the particle mass regime from 10–14 to 10–7 kilograms, the spacecraft encountered regions of intense swarms of particles, together with bursts of activity corresponding to clouds of particles only a few hundred meters across. This fine-scale structure can be explained by particle fragmentation. We estimate that 2800 ± 500 particles of diameter 15 micrometers or larger impacted the aerogel collectors, the largest being ~6 x 10–7 kilograms, which dominates the total collected mass.

1 Laboratory for Astrophysics and Space Research, Enrico Fermi Institute, University of Chicago, 933 East 56th Street, Chicago, IL 60637, USA.
2 Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Post Office Box 179, MS-B0560, Denver, CO 80201, USA.
3 Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91109–8099, USA.
4 Astronomy and Astrophysics Department, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
5 Planetary and Space Sciences Research Institute, Open University, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes MK7 6AA, UK.

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: tecon{at}tecon.uchicago.edu

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THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Impact Features on Stardust: Implications for Comet 81P/Wild 2 Dust.
F. Horz, R. Bastien, J. Borg, J. P. Bradley, J. C. Bridges, D. E. Brownlee, M. J. Burchell, M. Chi, M. J. Cintala, Z. R. Dai, et al. (2006)
Science 314, 1716-1719
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »
Modeling the Nucleus and Jets of Comet 81P/Wild 2 Based on the Stardust Encounter Data.
Z. Sekanina, D. E. Brownlee, T. E. Economou, A. J. Tuzzolino, and S. F. Green (2004)
Science 304, 1769-1774
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »


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