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Quaoar: New, Longitudinaly Resolved, Spectroscopic Characterization of Its Surface(50000) Quaoar, one of the largest Trans-neptunian objects, is comparable in size to Pluto's moon Charon. However, while Charon's surface is rich almost exclusively in H2O ice, Quaoar's surface characterized by ices of CH4, N2, as well as C2H6, a product of irradiation of CH4 (Dalle Ore et al. 2009). Because of its distance from the Sun, Quaoar is expected to have preserved, to a degree, its original composition, however, its relatively small size did not make it a prime candidate for presence of volatile ices in the study by Schaller and Brown (2007). Furthermore, based on the Brown et al. (2011) study (Brown, Schaller, & Fraser, 2011. A Hypothesis for the Color Diversity of the Kuiper Belt. ApJL, 739, L60) its red coloration points to CH3OH as the ice which, when irradiated, might have produced the red material. We present new visible to near-infrared (0.3-2.48 micrometers) spectro-photometric data obtained with the XSHOOTER (Vernet et al. 2011, A&A, 536A, 105 ) instrument at the VLT-ESO facility at four different longitudes on the surface of Quaoar. The data are complemented by previously published photometric observations obtained in the near-infrared (3.6, 4.5 micrometers) with the Spitzer Space Telescope, which provide an extra set of constraints in the model calculation process in spite of the different observing times that preclude establishing the spatial consistency between the two sets. For each of the four spectra we perform spectral modeling of the entire wavelength range -from 0.3 to 4.5 micrometers- by means of a code based on the Shkuratov radiative transfer formulation of the slab model. We obtain spatially resolved compositional information for the surface of Quaoar supporting the presence of CH4 and C2H6, as previously reported, along with evidence for N2 and NH3OH. The albedo at the two Spitzer bands indicates the likely presence of CO and CO2. CH3OH, predicted on the basis of Quaoar's coloration (Brown et al. 2011), is not found at any of the four longitudes, implying that the presence of this ice is a sufficient, but not necessary condition for reddening of TNO surfaces. Other ices, in particular CH4 (Brunetto et al. 2006), have been shown to be plausible precursors for reddening of TNO surfaces.
Document ID
20160003297
Acquisition Source
Ames Research Center
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Ore, C. M. Dalle (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Inst. Moffett Field, CA, United States)
Barucci, M. A. (Observatoire de Paris France)
Cruikshank, D. P. (NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field, CA, United States)
Alunni, Antonella (ERC, Inc. Moffett Field, CA, United States)
Date Acquired
March 11, 2016
Publication Date
November 9, 2014
Subject Category
Astrophysics
Report/Patent Number
ARC-E-DAA-TN18016
Meeting Information
Meeting: Annual Meeting of the Division for Planetary Science
Location: Tucson, AZ
Country: United States
Start Date: November 9, 2014
End Date: November 14, 2014
Sponsors: American Astronomical Society
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: NNA10DE12C
WBS: WBS 431924.02.01.01
CONTRACT_GRANT: NNX13AJ87A
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Public Use Permitted.
Keywords
Ices
Transneptunian Object
Organics

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