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Determination of the light curve of the Rosetta target asteroid (2867) Steins by the OSIRIS cameras onboard Rosetta

Kuppers, M., Mottola, S., Lowry, S.C., A'Hearn, M.F., Barbieri, C., Barucci, M.A., Fornasier, S., Groussin, O., Gutierrez, P., Hviid, S.F., and others. (2007) Determination of the light curve of the Rosetta target asteroid (2867) Steins by the OSIRIS cameras onboard Rosetta. Astronomy and Astrophysics, 462 (1). L13-L16. ISSN 0004-6361. E-ISSN 1432-0746. (doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20066694) (The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided) (KAR id:52310)

The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided.
Official URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361:20066694

Abstract

Context: In 2004 asteroid (2867) Steins has been selected as a flyby target for the Rosetta mission. Determination of its spin period and the orientation of its rotation axis are essential for optimization of the flyby planning. Aims: Measurement of the rotation period and light curve of asteroid (2867) Steins at a phase angle larger than achievable from ground based observations, providing a high quality data set to contribute to the determination of the orientation of the spin axis and of the pole direction. Methods: On March 11, 2006, asteroid (2867) Steins was observed continuously for 24 h with the scientific camera system OSIRIS onboard Rosetta. The phase angle was 41.7 degrees, larger than the maximum phase angle of 30 degrees when Steins is observed from Earth. A total of 238 images, covering four rotation periods without interruption, were acquired. Results: The light curve of (2867) Steins is double peaked with an amplitude of ~0.23 mag. The rotation period is 6.052 ± 0.007 h. The continuous observations over four rotation periods exclude the possibility of period ambiguities. There is no indication of deviation from a principal axis rotation state. Assuming a slope parameter of G = 0.15, the absolute visual magnitude of Steins is 13.05 ± 0.03. © ESO 2007.

Item Type: Article
DOI/Identification number: 10.1051/0004-6361:20066694
Additional information: Unmapped bibliographic data: LA - English [Field not mapped to EPrints] J2 - Astron. Astrophys. [Field not mapped to EPrints] AD - Max-Planck-Institut für Sonnensystemforschung, Germany [Field not mapped to EPrints] AD - Institute of Planetary Research, DLR, Germany [Field not mapped to EPrints] AD - Astrophysics Research Centre, Queen's University Belfast, United Kingdom [Field not mapped to EPrints] AD - Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, United States [Field not mapped to EPrints] AD - Dipartimento di Astronomia, CISAS, Università di Padova, Italy [Field not mapped to EPrints] AD - University of Paris 7, France [Field not mapped to EPrints] AD - Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Marseille, France [Field not mapped to EPrints] AD - Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía, CSIC, Spain [Field not mapped to EPrints] DB - Scopus [Field not mapped to EPrints]
Uncontrolled keywords: Minor planets, asteroids, Techniques: photometric, Airborne telescopes, Data structures, Imaging techniques, Phase meters, Photometry, Planets, Space research, Asteroids, Light curve, Minor planets, Cameras
Subjects: Q Science > QB Astronomy
Divisions: Divisions > Division of Natural Sciences > Physics and Astronomy
Depositing User: Stephen Lowry
Date Deposited: 08 Dec 2015 23:10 UTC
Last Modified: 16 Nov 2021 10:21 UTC
Resource URI: https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/52310 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)

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