Deep Impact observations by OSIRIS onboard the Rosetta spacecraft.
The OSIRIS cameras (optical, spectroscopic, and infrared remote imaging system) onboard the European Space Agency's Rosetta spacecraft observed comet 9P/Tempel 1 for 17 days continuously around the time of NASA's Deep Impact mission. The cyanide-to-water production ratio was slightly enhanced in the impact cloud, compared with that of normal comet activity. Dust particles were flowing outward in the coma at >160 meters per second, accelerated by the gas. The slope of the brightness increase showed a dip about 200 seconds after the impact. Dust Afrho values before and long after the impact confirm the slight decrease of cometary activity. The dust-to-water mass ratio was much larger than 1.
Keller
Horst Uwe
HU
Max-Planck Institut für Sonnensystemforschung, Max-Planck-Strasse 2, 37191 Katlenburg-Lindau, Germany. keller@mps.mpg.de
Jorda
Laurent
L
Küppers
Michael
M
Gutierrez
Pedro J
PJ
Hviid
Stubbe F
SF
Knollenberg
Jörg
J
Lara
Luisa-Maria
LM
Sierks
Holger
H
Barbieri
Cesare
C
Lamy
Philippe
P
Rickman
Hans
H
Rodrigo
Rafael
R
D019443:Cosmic Dust; D019110:Meteoroids; D009930:Organic Chemicals / Q000032:analysis; D018531:Spacecraft; D013055:Spectrophotometry, Infrared; D013057:Spectrum Analysis
D019443:Cosmic Dust; D009930:Organic Chemicals