Comparative Mid-Infrared Spectroscopy of Dark, Primitive Asteroids: Does Shared Taxonomic Class Indicate Shared Silicate Composition?

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Hauptverfasser: Humes, Oriel A., Martin, Audrey C., Thomas, Cristina A., Emery, Joshua P.
Format: Preprint
Veröffentlicht: 2024
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author Humes, Oriel A.
Martin, Audrey C.
Thomas, Cristina A.
Emery, Joshua P.
author_facet Humes, Oriel A.
Martin, Audrey C.
Thomas, Cristina A.
Emery, Joshua P.
contents Primitive asteroids with low albedos and red slopes in the visible and near infrared (VNIR) are found in both the Main Belt and the Jupiter Trojan clouds. In order to determine whether the VNIR spectral similarities of primitive Main Belt asteroids and Jupiter Trojans are reflective of a true compositional similarity, we compare the mid-infrared silicate emission features of Main Belt and Jupiter Trojan asteroids. Using archival data from the Spitzer Space Telescope's IRS spectrograph and observations from the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy's (SOFIA) FORCAST instrument, we analyze the 5-40 micron spectra of thirteen primitive Main Belt asteroids and compare them to those of Jupiter Trojans in the literature. We find that while many primitive asteroids in the Main Belt resemble their Trojan counterparts with strong spectral signatures of olivine-rich high-porosity silicate regoliths, we identify (368) Haidea as a spectrally distinctive asteroid that lacks strong evidence of olivine in its MIR spectrum. Differences in silicate compositions among D-type asteroids imply a diversity of origins for primitive asteroids.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2404_19388
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Comparative Mid-Infrared Spectroscopy of Dark, Primitive Asteroids: Does Shared Taxonomic Class Indicate Shared Silicate Composition?
Humes, Oriel A.
Martin, Audrey C.
Thomas, Cristina A.
Emery, Joshua P.
Earth and Planetary Astrophysics
Primitive asteroids with low albedos and red slopes in the visible and near infrared (VNIR) are found in both the Main Belt and the Jupiter Trojan clouds. In order to determine whether the VNIR spectral similarities of primitive Main Belt asteroids and Jupiter Trojans are reflective of a true compositional similarity, we compare the mid-infrared silicate emission features of Main Belt and Jupiter Trojan asteroids. Using archival data from the Spitzer Space Telescope's IRS spectrograph and observations from the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy's (SOFIA) FORCAST instrument, we analyze the 5-40 micron spectra of thirteen primitive Main Belt asteroids and compare them to those of Jupiter Trojans in the literature. We find that while many primitive asteroids in the Main Belt resemble their Trojan counterparts with strong spectral signatures of olivine-rich high-porosity silicate regoliths, we identify (368) Haidea as a spectrally distinctive asteroid that lacks strong evidence of olivine in its MIR spectrum. Differences in silicate compositions among D-type asteroids imply a diversity of origins for primitive asteroids.
title Comparative Mid-Infrared Spectroscopy of Dark, Primitive Asteroids: Does Shared Taxonomic Class Indicate Shared Silicate Composition?
topic Earth and Planetary Astrophysics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2404.19388