Preliminary studies of electromagnetic sounding of cometary nuclei
Abstract
The internal structure of a comet could be determined with a spacecraft borne electromagnetic sounder. A dielectric profile of the comet could be produced in direct analogy with terrestrial glacier and ice sheet sounding experiments. This profile would allow the detection of a rocky core or ice layers if they exist, just as layers in the ice and the bedrock interface have been clearly observed through the Greenland ice sheet. It would also provide a gross estimate of the amount of dust in the icy region. Models for the response of the nucleus and cometary plasma to electromagnetic sounding are developed and used to derive experimental parameters. A point system design was completed. Preliminary engineering study results indicate that the sounder is well within the bounds of current space technology.
- Publication:
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NASA STI/Recon Technical Report N
- Pub Date:
- October 1978
- Bibcode:
- 1978STIN...7834022G
- Keywords:
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- Comet Nuclei;
- Electromagnetic Measurement;
- Satellite-Borne Instruments;
- Astronomy;
- Dielectrics;
- Electrical Engineering;
- Lunar and Planetary Exploration