WATER ICE IN CHIRON
Jane Luu
Astrophysical Journal Letters, 2000, published somewhere
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Abstract
We report the detection of water ice in the Centaur 2060 Chiron, based on near-infrared spectra (1.0 to 2.5 micron) taken with the 3.8 m United
Kingdom Infrared Telescope and the 10 m Keck Telescope. The appearance of this ice is correlated with the recent decline in Chiron's cometary
activity: the decrease in the coma cross section allows previously hidden solid-state surface features to be seen. We predict that water ice is
ubiquitous among Centaurs and Kuiper Belt objects, but its surface coverage varies from object to object and thus determines its detectability and
the occurrence of cometary activity.
Last updated February 2000