Properties of the Irregular Satellite System around Uranus Inferred from K2 , Herschel , and Spitzer Observations
- Konkoly Observatory, Research Centre for Astronomy and Earth Sciences, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Konkoly Thege Miklós út 15-17, H-1121 Budapest (Hungary)
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Northern Arizona University, P.O. Box 6010, Flagstaff, AZ 86011 (United States)
In this paper, we present visible-range light curves of the irregular Uranian satellites Sycorax, Caliban, Prospero, Ferdinand, and Setebos taken with the Kepler Space Telescope over the course of the K2 mission. Thermal emission measurements obtained with the Herschel /PACS and Spitzer /MIPS instruments of Sycorax and Caliban were also analyzed and used to determine size, albedo, and surface characteristics of these bodies. We compare these properties with the rotational and surface characteristics of irregular satellites in other giant planet systems and also with those of main belt and Trojan asteroids and trans-Neptunian objects. Our results indicate that the Uranian irregular satellite system likely went through a more intense collisional evolution than the irregular satellites of Jupiter and Saturn. Surface characteristics of Uranian irregular satellites seem to resemble the Centaurs and trans-Neptunian objects more than irregular satellites around other giant planets, suggesting the existence of a compositional discontinuity in the young solar system inside the orbit of Uranus.
- OSTI ID:
- 22663165
- Journal Information:
- Astronomical Journal (Online), Vol. 154, Issue 3; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1538-3881
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
THE IRREGULAR SATELLITES: THE MOST COLLISIONALLY EVOLVED POPULATIONS IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM
Uranus and Neptune: The distant giants