Issue |
A&A
Volume 490, Number 1, October IV 2008
|
|
---|---|---|
Page(s) | 377 - 386 | |
Section | Planets and planetary systems | |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361:20078792 | |
Published online | 11 September 2008 |
Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko at a large heliocentric distance *
1
Max Planck Institute fuer Sonnensystemforschung, Max-Planck-Str. 2, 37191 Katlenburg-Lindau, Germany e-mail: [tubiana;boehnhardt;drahus]@mps.mpg.de
2
Universidad Metropolitana de Ciencias de la Educación, Santiago, Chile e-mail: lbarrera@umce.cl
Received:
4
October
2007
Accepted:
15
July
2008
Aims. The Jupiter family comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (67P/C-G) is the target comet of ESA's ROSETTA mission. A detailed portrait of this comet has been drawn from observations around perihelion, but what needs to be enhanced is the description of the comet's behaviour at large heliocentric distance. It is not only important for planning the rendezvous of the ROSETTA spacecraft with the comet, but will also provide valuable information on basic physical properties of the nucleus and the possible distant activity of JFCs.
Methods. We performed broad-band imaging and longslit spectroscopy of 67P/C-G in
the visible wavelength range in
June 2004, May 2006, and August 2006, when the comet was at the heliocentric
distance of
AU. The observations were performed at the ESO VLT with the FORS2 instrument.
Results. The comet appears point-like at all observing epochs, indicating that
no significant coma is present around the nucleus. From our
67P/C-G
images, we determined a synodic rotational period
of the nucleus of h and a linear phase function coefficient
mag/°. We estimated the large-to-small axis ratio
and, assuming an albedo of 0.04, an effective nucleus radius of
km, which corresponds to the mean absolute magnitude
mag.
No colour variation with the rotational phase is found, based on broadband colour
indices and reflectance spectra of the nucleus. A trail-like structure of heavy
grains is clearly detected in June 2004, displaying a surface brightness
of ~28 mag/
in R the filter. For the first time we also determined
visible colours of the trail-like structure:
mag/´´ 2
and
mag/´´ 2. A trail-like structure is
also barely visible in the May 2006 images, but a quantitative study was
not possible.
Key words: comets: general / comets: individual: comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko / methods: observational / techniques: photometric / techniques: spectroscopic / solar system: general
© ESO, 2008
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