(3200) Phaethon: asteroid or comet?
Abstract
Our polarimetric measurements of (3200) Phaethon indicate that this object is most probably an asteroid, rather than a comet, in spite of having unusual orbital properties and being the parent body of the Geminid shower. We confirm previous suggestions that it could likely be a fugitive from the dynamical family of (2) Pallas. We find that Phaethon exhibits the highest values of linear polarization ever found for small solar system objects. Its polarimetric properties also suggest a low-albedo, as opposite to higher albedos resulting from thermal IR data.
- Publication:
-
European Planetary Science Congress
- Pub Date:
- September 2018
- Bibcode:
- 2018EPSC...12..251C