The Small Satellites of Pluto as Observed by New Horizons
H. A. Weaver, M. W. Buie, B. J. Buratti, W. M. Grundy, T. R. Lauer, C. B. Olkin, A. H. Parker, S. B. Porter, M. R. Showalter, J. R. Spencer, S. A. Stern, A. J. … 展开作者
H. A. Weaver, M. W. Buie, B. J. Buratti, W. M. Grundy, T. R. Lauer, C. B. Olkin, A. H. Parker, S. B. Porter, M. R. Showalter, J. R. Spencer, S. A. Stern, A. J. Verbiscer, W. B. McKinnon, J. M. Moore, S. J. Robbins, P. Schenk, K. N. Singer, O. S. Barnouin, A. F. Cheng, C. M. Ernst, C. M. Lisse, D. E. Jennings, A. W. Lunsford, D. C. Reuter, D. P. Hamilton, D. E. Kaufmann, K. Ennico, L. A. Young, R. A. Beyer, R. P. Binzel, V. J. Bray, A. L. Chaikin, J. C. Cook, D. P. Cruikshank, C. M. Dalle Ore, A. M. Earle, G. R. Gladstone, C. J. A. Howett, I. R. Linscott, F. Nimmo, J. Wm. Parker, S. Philippe, S. Protopapa, H. J. Reitsema, B. Schmitt, T. Stryk, M. E. Summers, C. C. C. Tsang, H. H. B. Throop, O. L. White, A. M. Zangari
The New Horizons mission has provided resolved measurements of Pluto's moons Styx, Nix, Kerberos, and Hydra. All four are small, with equivalent spherical diameters of $\approx$40 km for Nix and Hydra and ~10 km for Styx and Kerberos. They are also highly elongated, with maximum to minimum axis ratios of $\approx$2. All four moons have high albedos ( $\approx$50-90 %) suggestive of a water-ice surface composition. Crater densities on Nix and Hydra imply surface ages $\gtrsim$ 4 Ga. The small moons rotate much faster than synchronous, with rotational poles clustered nearly orthogonal to the common pole directions of Pluto and Charon. These results reinforce the hypothesis that the small moons formed in the aftermath of a collision that produced the Pluto-Charon binary.
Plutino 15810 (1994 JR1), an accidental quasi-satellite of Pluto
在太阳系中,准卫星以1:1的平均运动共振运动,像逆行卫星一样绕着它们的主天体运行,但它们的相互分离远远超过希尔半径,并且轨道不是闭合的,因为它们绕着太阳而不是主天体运行。到目前为止,在金星、地球、矮行星(1)谷神星、大小行星(4)灶神星、木星、土星和海王星周围发现了暂时处于准卫星动力状态的小天体。使用计算机模拟,Tiscareno和Malhotra预测存在一个小但重要的小型天体群体,以1:1的平均运动与冥王星共振。在这里,我们使用N体计算表明,冥王星15810(1994 JR 1)目前是冥王星的一个偶然的准卫星,它将保持近35万年。我们所说的偶然是指,准卫星相不是由离散的近距离接触形式的直接引力影响触发(或终止)的,而是共振的结果。冥王星的相对平均经度在与海王星的2:3平均运动共振引起的轨道周期振荡的叠加天平动中循环。这些准卫星事件是经常性的,其周期接近200万年。这使得15810成为第一个与冥王星以1:1的平均运动共振运动的小天体。这也使冥王星成为除了谷神星之外第二颗拥有准卫星的矮行星。我们的发现证实了准卫星共振阶段并不局限于围绕主要行星运行的小天体,但也可能是矮行星/小行星。此外,15810可以被认为是美国宇航局在2015年主要飞越冥王星之后的冥王星-柯伊伯带任务新视野的可能次要目标。
A Pluto--Charon Sonata: Dynamical Limits on the Masses of the Small Satellites
在2005年至2012年期间,哈勃太空望远镜(HST)的图像显示有四颗卫星围绕冥王星-冥卫一运行(Weaver et al 2006,Showalter et al 2011,2012)。虽然它们的轨道和几何形状是众所周知的,但两颗最大的卫星- Nix和Hydra -质量的2个$σ$不确定性与它们的HST质量相当(Brozovic等人2015,Showalter & Hamilton 2015,Weaver等人2016)。值得注意的是,在0.1-1 Gyr时间尺度上的长期系统稳定性的引力$n$ -体计算机计算对Nix和Hydra的质量有更严格的限制,其上限比HST质量大$\sim$ 10%。使用新视野号的尺寸测量对质量密度的限制表明,尼克斯和九头蛇形成于比冥王星和冥卫一更冰冷的物质中。
The Impact Crater Size-Frequency Distribution on Pluto Follows a Truncated Pareto Distribution: Results from a First Data Set Based on the Recent New Horizons' Flyby
We consider a scenario where the small satellites of Pluto and Charon grew within a disk of debris from an impact between Charon and a trans-Neptunian Object (TNO). After Charon's orbital motion boosts the debris into a disk-like structure, rapid orbital damping of meter-size or smaller objects is essential to prevent the subsequent re-accretion or dynamical ejection by the binary. From analytical estimates and simulations of disk evolution, we estimate an impactor radius of 30-100 km; smaller (larger) radii apply to an oblique (direct) impact. Although collisions between large TNOs and Charon…
The Pluto system is an archetype for the multitude of icy dwarf planets and accompanying satellite systems that populate the vast volume of the solar system beyond Neptune. New Horizons' exploration of Pluto and its five moons gave us a glimpse into the range of properties that their kin may host. Furthermore, the surfaces of Pluto and Charon record eons of bombardment by small trans-Neptunian objects, and by treating them as witness plates we can infer a few key properties of the trans-Neptunian population at sizes far below current direct-detection limits. This chapter summarizes what we hav…
The Atmosphere of Pluto as Observed by New Horizons
在新视野号飞越期间进行的观测提供了冥王星大气层当前状态的详细快照。虽然低层大气(高度小于200公里)与地面恒星掩星一致,但高层大气比遭遇前模型显示的要冷得多,也更紧凑。分子氮(N $_2$)在大气中占主导地位(海拔<1800公里左右),而甲烷(CH PDMATHAMN),乙炔(C $_2$ H $_2$),乙烯(C $_2$ H $_4$),和乙烷(C $_2$ H $_6$)是丰富的次要种,并可能导致冥王星周围的大范围烟雾的产生。寒冷的高层大气切断了冥王星大气层向太空的预期增强的牛仔裤,流体动力学般的逃逸。目前还不清楚冥王星大气层的现状是否代表了它的平均状态--在季节或地质年表上。
New Horizons Upper Limits on O$_2$ in Pluto's Present Day Atmosphere
罗塞塔航天器在彗星67 P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko的昏迷中发现了分子氧(O $_2$)(Bieler et al. 2015),这一令人惊讶的发现挑战了我们对柯伊伯带天体上和内部这种挥发性物质的了解。这一发现促使我们在柯伊伯带行星冥王星的大气中寻找氧气,因为即使在冥王星的地面温度下,O $_2$也是不稳定的。在2015年7月新视野号飞越冥王星期间,该航天器使用各种观测方法探测了冥王星大气层的组成,包括由Alice紫外光谱仪观测到的紫外掩星(Stern et al. 2015; Gladstone et al. 2016; Young et al. 2017)。正如这些报告中所描述的,冥王星大气层中分子物质的吸收产生了N $_2$的检测,以及碳氢化合物物质,如CH $_2$,C $_2$ H $_2$,C $_2$ H $_4$和C $_2$ H $_6$。我们在这里的工作进一步检查了这些数据,以寻找分子氧(O $_2$)的紫外吸收,该分子氧在Alice光谱仪带通中具有重要的截面。我们没有发现O $_2$吸收的证据,并将上限的O $_2$在冥王星的大气中作为切线高度的函数高达700公里。在大部分大气中,视线丰度单位的上限约为3x 10 $^{15}$ cm $^{-2}$,这取决于切线高度,对应的混合比为10 $^{-6}$:10 $^{-4}$,远低于彗星67 …
The Pluto-Charon system provides a broad variety of constraints on planetary formation, composition, chemistry, and evolution. Pluto was the first body to be discovered in what is now known as the Kuiper belt, its orbit ultimately becoming a major clue that the giant planets underwent substantial orbital migration early in Solar System history. This migration has been linked to an early instability in the orbits of the giant planets and the formation of the Kuiper belt itself, from an ancestral trans-Neptunian planetesimal disk that included Pluto. Pluto-Charon is emblematic of what are now re…
We discuss a new set of $\sim$ 500 numerical n-body calculations designed to constrain the masses and bulk densities of Styx, Nix, Kerberos, and Hydra. Comparisons of different techniques for deriving the semimajor axis and eccentricity of the four satellites favor methods relying on the theory of Lee & Peale (2006), where satellite orbits are derived in the context of the restricted three body problem (Pluto, Charon, and one massless satellite). In each simulation, we adopt the nominal satellite masses derived in Kenyon & Bromley (2019a), multiply the mass of at least one satellite by a numer…
Pluto's atmosphere from the 29 June 2015 ground-based stellar occultation at the time of the New Horizons flyby
我们提出了2015年6月29日从新西兰和澳大利亚观测到的多弦冥王星掩星的结果。这是在美国宇航局新视野号飞越冥王星系统前两周发生的,可以作为地面和空间结果之间的有用比较。我们发现冥王星的大气层仍在膨胀,自2013年以来压力显著增加了5 $\pm$ 2\%,自1988年以来几乎增加了3倍。这一趋势排除了,截至今天,与冥王星从太阳衰退有关的大气崩溃。在新西兰的几个地点观测到了罕见的中心闪光。闪光的形状和幅度与一个厚度约3 km的球形透明大气层相一致,该大气层的底部位于冥王星表面上方约4 km处,平均温度梯度约为5 K km $^{-1}$。我们讨论的可能性,观测到的和建模的闪光之间的小偏差是由当地的地形特征(山脉)沿冥王星的肢体,阻止恒星光。最后,利用两种可能的温度分布,从我们的最深可达水平向下外推到表面的压力分布,我们得到了表面压力的可能范围为11.9-13.7~ $μ$ bar。
Constraints on the Microphysics of Pluto's Photochemical Haze from New Horizons Observations
新视野号飞越冥王星证实了其大气层中存在薄雾。观测到的高相亮度与低相亮度之比很大,再加上霾的蓝色,表明霾粒子是分形聚集体,类似于土卫六上的光化学霾。因此,研究冥王星的薄雾可以揭示冥王星和泰坦大气之间的相似性和差异。我们使用社区气溶胶和大气辐射模型来模拟雾霾分布,假设分布是由来自光化学的颗粒的沉降和凝聚形成的。被认为是由纯粹的球形和纯粹的分形聚集体颗粒的霾。当光化学产物的向下通量等于柱积分甲烷破坏率~1.2 $\times$ 10 $^{-14}$ g cm $^{-2}$ s $^{-1}$时,模型结果与掩星观测结果之间的一致性可通过聚集粒子获得,而对于球形粒子,质量通量必须大2-3倍。这一通量几乎与以前通过将微物理模型结果与卡西尼号观测结果进行比较而获得的土卫六的霾产生通量相同。根据前向散射测量,聚集体粒子半径对粒子带电很敏感,粒子荷径比为30 e-/μm是在冥王星表面附近产生约0.1-0.2 μm聚集体所必需的。这样的粒子荷径比以前在土卫六上获得的粒子荷径比高2-4倍。由具有相同粒子荷径比的球体组成的雾具有小4倍的粒子。这些结果进一步表明,烟雾颗粒是分形聚集体。我们还考虑了HCN和C $_{2}$ -碳氢化合物的凝结对霾颗粒的影响,这可能在形成它们的分布中起重要作用。
The first exploration of Pluto was motivated by (i) the many intriguing aspects of this body, its atmosphere, and its giant impact binary-planet formation; as well as (ii) the scientific desire to initiate the reconnaissance of the newly-discovered population of dwarf planets in the Kuiper Belt. That exploration took place in the form of a single spacecraft flyby that yielded an impressive array of exciting results that have transformed our understanding of this world and its satellites, and which opened our eyes to the exciting nature of the dwarf planet population of the Kuiper Belt. From Pl…
The New Horizons spacecraft returned images and compositional data showing that terrains on Pluto span a variety of ages, ranging from relatively ancient, heavily cratered areas to very young surfaces with few-to-no impact craters. One of the regions with very few impact craters is dominated by enormous rises with hummocky flanks. Similar features do not exist anywhere else in the imaged solar system. Here we analyze the geomorphology and composition of the features and conclude this region was resurfaced by cryovolcanic processes, of a type and scale so far unique to Pluto. Creation of this t…
The First High-Phase Observations of a KBO: New Horizons Imaging of (15810) 1994 JR1 from the Kuiper Belt
美国宇航局的新视野号宇宙飞船于2015年11月2日使用长距离侦察成像仪(LORRI)从1.85 AU的距离观察到(15810)1994 JR $_1$,这是一个3:2共振的库皮尔带天体(KBO),并于2016年4月7日再次从0.71 AU的距离观察到。这是第一次近距离观测冥王星以外的KBO。结合地面和哈勃空间望远镜(HST)在小相位角的观测和LORRI在更高相位角的观测,我们产生了第一个典型KBO的盘积分太阳相位曲线,$α$ =0.6-58 $^\circ$。在这些几何形状的观测,只能从外太阳系的航天器,约束表面性质,如宏观粗糙度和单粒子相函数。1994 JR $_1$表面粗糙,平均地形坡度为37 $\pm$ 5 $^\circ$,自转周期相对较快,为5.47 $\pm$ 0.33小时。1994 JR $_1$目前距离冥王星2.7天文单位;我们的天体测量点能够进行高精度的轨道确定和积分,这表明它每240万年(10个$^4$日心轨道)就接近冥王星,导致冥王星扰动1994 JR $_1$。在11月的航天器观测期间,使用HST以两种颜色同时观测到KBO,证实了它非常红的光谱斜率。这些观测为新视野-柯伊伯带扩展任务中许多潜在的未来遥远KBO观测奠定了基础。
The Pluto-Charon (PC) pair is usually thought of as a binary in the dual synchronous state, which is the endpoint of its tidal evolution. The discovery of the small circumbinary moons, Styx, Nix, Kerberos, and Hydra, placed close to the mean motions resonances (MMRs) 3/1, 4/1, 5/1, and 6/1 with Charon, respectively, reveals a complex dynamical architecture of the system. Several formation mechanisms for the PC system have been proposed. Our goal is to analyse the past and current orbital dynamics of the satellite system. We study the past and current dynamics of the PC system through a large s…