Dust environment of long-period comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS)
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arXiv
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| Autori principali: | , , , , , |
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| Natura: | Preprint |
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2025
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| _version_ | 1866917974845161472 |
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| author | Moreno, Fernando Goetz, Charlotte Aceituno, Francisco J. Casanova, Victor Sota, Alfredo Santos-Sanz, Pablo |
| author_facet | Moreno, Fernando Goetz, Charlotte Aceituno, Francisco J. Casanova, Victor Sota, Alfredo Santos-Sanz, Pablo |
| contents | We present a characterization of the dust environment of long-period comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) by analyzing an extensive dataset, including dust tail images and photometric measurements, from 10 au pre-perihelion to 1.6 au post-perihelion, using our forward Monte Carlo code. For this analysis, we combine pre-perihelion images from the Zwicky Transient Facility with post-perihelion images from the Sierra Nevada Observatory (IAA-CSIC, Granada, Spain), along with both amateur and professional photometric measurements, including Af$ρ$ and magnitude data. We find that the dust loss rate increases monotonically from the assumed start of activity at a heliocentric distance of approximately 15 au down to 4 au inbound, where the comet exhibits a notable decrease in dust production by about one order of magnitude. Following this period of reduced activity, the dust production rate rises again toward perihelion, reaching a peak production rate of 10$^5$ kg s$^{-1}$. The size distribution of the particles follows a power law, with its index decreasing toward perihelion, along with a reduction in the minimum particle radius, leading to both brightness and dust mass being dominated by small particles at perihelion. The particle speeds exhibit a dependence on heliocentric distance ($r_h$) that closely follows the classical $r_h^{-0.5}$ law near perihelion but deviates at larger heliocentric distances. We demonstrate that the dependence of particle speeds on the cosine of the solar zenith angle at the emission point plays a significant role in shaping the synthetic dust tails and in the formation of a dark stripe along the tail axis observed in high spatial resolution images near the comet's perihelion. |
| format | Preprint |
| id |
arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2504_01845 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Dust environment of long-period comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) Moreno, Fernando Goetz, Charlotte Aceituno, Francisco J. Casanova, Victor Sota, Alfredo Santos-Sanz, Pablo Earth and Planetary Astrophysics We present a characterization of the dust environment of long-period comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) by analyzing an extensive dataset, including dust tail images and photometric measurements, from 10 au pre-perihelion to 1.6 au post-perihelion, using our forward Monte Carlo code. For this analysis, we combine pre-perihelion images from the Zwicky Transient Facility with post-perihelion images from the Sierra Nevada Observatory (IAA-CSIC, Granada, Spain), along with both amateur and professional photometric measurements, including Af$ρ$ and magnitude data. We find that the dust loss rate increases monotonically from the assumed start of activity at a heliocentric distance of approximately 15 au down to 4 au inbound, where the comet exhibits a notable decrease in dust production by about one order of magnitude. Following this period of reduced activity, the dust production rate rises again toward perihelion, reaching a peak production rate of 10$^5$ kg s$^{-1}$. The size distribution of the particles follows a power law, with its index decreasing toward perihelion, along with a reduction in the minimum particle radius, leading to both brightness and dust mass being dominated by small particles at perihelion. The particle speeds exhibit a dependence on heliocentric distance ($r_h$) that closely follows the classical $r_h^{-0.5}$ law near perihelion but deviates at larger heliocentric distances. We demonstrate that the dependence of particle speeds on the cosine of the solar zenith angle at the emission point plays a significant role in shaping the synthetic dust tails and in the formation of a dark stripe along the tail axis observed in high spatial resolution images near the comet's perihelion. |
| title | Dust environment of long-period comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) |
| topic | Earth and Planetary Astrophysics |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2504.01845 |