2010 Annual Research Report

 

Samarasinha's rotational studies of comets using rotational lightcurves or coma morphology (primarily in collaboration with B. Mueller, T. Farnham, and M. A’Hearn) are ongoing and the objects under study includes comets 9P/Tempel 1, 81P/Wild 2, and 103P/Hartley 2. In addition, spin studies of comet 2P/Encke is ongoing in collaboration with B. Mueller, and Y. Fernandez.

 

Two papers on the long-term observations spanning multiple orbits of comet 9P/Tempel 1 (Meech et al.) and the characterization of its rotational evolution (Belton et al.) were submitted for publication and currently they are in review.

 

Samarasinha continued his research on coma morphologies of comets in order to characterize activity and physical properties (in collaboration with T. Farnham, B. Mueller, Y. Fernandez, L. McFadden, S. Larson). A manuscript on image enhancement techniques for cometary comae (Samarasinha and Larson) is mostly completed and will be submitted for publication in 2011.

 

Samarasinha has also developed the computer codes necessary to simultaneously monitor both the rotational and orbital evolutions of cometary nuclei under outgassing. Combined with ground-based and spacecraft data, these codes will ultimately be used to derive a precise density for comet 9P/Tempel 1. The preliminary results based on this study were presented at the 2010 DPS meeting and a manuscript detailing the results for comet 9P/Tempel 1 (Samarasinha et al.) will be submitted for publication in 2011.

 

In collaboration with B. Mueller, a numerical investigation of how rotational lightcurves of non-principal axis rotators would observationally manifest will be carried out. An analytical study on how different component periods of a non-principal axis rotator are connected to each other will be submitted for publication in 2011.

 

 

Papers:

 

Mueller, B.E.A., Samarasinha, N.H., Rauer, H., and Helbert, J., 2010. Determination of a precise rotation period for the Deep Space 1 target, Comet 19P/Borrelly. Icarus 209, 745-752.

 

IAU Circulars:

 

Samarasinha, N.H., Mueller, B.E.A., A’Hearn, M.F., and Farnham, T.L., 2010. Comet 103P/Hartley. IAUC 9178.

 

Farnham, T.L., Samarasinha, N.H., and Mueller, B.E.A., 2010. Comet 81P/Wild 2. IAUC 9138.

 

Abstracts:

 

Samarasinha, N.H., Gutierrez, P.J., Belton, M.J.S., Farnham, T., Mueller, B.E.A., and Chesley, S.R., 2010. Bulk density of comet 9P/Tempel 1. B.A.A.S. 42, 966.

 

Mueller, B.E.A., Farnham, T.L., Samarasinha, N.H., and A’Hearn, M.F., 2010. Determination of the rotation period of comet 81P/Wild. B.A.A.S. 42, 966.

 

Fernandez, Y.R., Samarasinha, N.H., Mueller, B.E.A., and Woodney, L.M., 2010. Using imaging of multiple outbursts to investigate the behavior and nucleus properties of comet 29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 1. B.A.A.S. 42, 964.

 

Fernandez, Y.R., Samarasinha, N.H., Mueller, B.E.A., and Woodney, L.M., 2010. Understanding outbursts in comet 29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 1. B.A.A.S. 42.