Super-catastrophic disruption of asteroids at small perihelion distances

Result code in IS VaVaI

<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F00216208%3A11320%2F16%3A10331702" target="_blank" >RIV/00216208:11320/16:10331702 - isvavai.cz</a>

Result on the web

<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nature16934" target="_blank" >http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nature16934</a>

DOI - Digital Object Identifier

<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nature16934" target="_blank" >10.1038/nature16934</a>

Result language

angličtina

Original language name

Super-catastrophic disruption of asteroids at small perihelion distances

Original language description

Most near-Earth objects came from the asteroid belt and drifted via non-gravitational thermal forces into resonant escape routes that, in turn, pushed them onto planet-crossing orbits(1-3). Models predict that numerous asteroids should be found on orbits that closely approach the Sun, but few have been seen. In addition, even though the near-Earth-object population in general is an even mix of low-albedo (less than ten per cent of incident radiation is reflected) and high-albedo (more than ten per cent of incident radiation is reflected) asteroids, the characterized asteroids near the Sun typically have high albedos(4). Here we report a quantitative comparison of actual asteroid detections and a near-Earth-object model (which accounts for observational selection effects). We conclude that the deficit of low-albedo objects near the Sun arises from the super-catastrophic breakup (that is, almost complete disintegration) of a substantial fraction of asteroids when they achieve perihelion distances of a few tens of solar radii. The distance at which destruction occurs is greater for smaller asteroids, and their temperatures during perihelion passages are too low for evaporation to explain their disappearance. Although both bright and dark (high-and low-albedo) asteroids eventually break up, we find that low-albedo asteroids are more likely to be destroyed farther from the Sun, which explains the apparent excess of high-albedo near-Earth objects and suggests that low-albedo asteroids break up more easily as a result of thermal effects.

Czech name

—

Czech description

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Type

J_x - Unclassified - Peer-reviewed scientific article (Jimp, Jsc and Jost)

CEP classification

BN - Astronomy and celestial mechanics, astrophysics

OECD FORD branch

—

Project

<a href="/en/project/GA13-01308S" target="_blank" >GA13-01308S: Dynamics of small bodies in the solar system</a><br>

Continuities

P - Projekt vyzkumu a vyvoje financovany z verejnych zdroju (s odkazem do CEP)

Publication year

2016

Confidentiality

S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů

Name of the periodical

Nature

ISSN

0028-0836

e-ISSN

—

Volume of the periodical

530

Issue of the periodical within the volume

7590

Country of publishing house

GB - UNITED KINGDOM

Number of pages

4

Pages from-to

303-306

UT code for WoS article

000370327100030

EID of the result in the Scopus database

2-s2.0-84959020371