Related papers: Activity in Geminid Parent (3200) Phaethon
Asteroid (3200) Phaethon is an active near-Earth asteroid and the parent body of the Geminid Meteor Shower. Because of its small perihelion distance, Phaethon's surface reaches temperatures sufficient to destabilize hydrated materials. We…
We present thermal infrared observations of the active asteroid (and Geminid meteoroid stream parent) 3200 Phaethon using the Very Large Telescope. The images, at 10.7 micron wavelength, were taken with Phaethon at its closest approach to…
The asteroid (3200) Phaethon is known to be the parent body of the Geminids, although meteor showers are commonly associated with the activity of periodic comets. What is most peculiar to the asteroid is its comet-like activity in the…
We present a deep imaging and spectroscopic search for emission from (3200) Phaethon, a large near-Earth asteroid that appears to be the parent of the strong Geminid meteoroid stream, using the 4.3 m Lowell Discovery Telescope. Observations…
Near-Earth asteroid (3200) Phaethon is notable for its association to a strong annual meteor shower, the Geminids, indicative of one or more episodes of mass ejection in the past. The mechanism of Phaethon's past activity is not yet…
Near-Earth asteroid (3200) Phaethon is an active asteroid with a dust tail repeatedly observed over the past decade for 3 days during each perihelion passage down to a heliocentric distance of 0.14 au. The mechanism causing the activity is…
Asteroid (3200) Phaethon, a B-type asteroid, has been active during its perihelion passages. This asteroid is considered to be a source of the Geminid meteor stream. It is reported that this asteroid is spinning at a rotation period of…
A long-term sublimation model to explain how Phaethon could provide the Geminid stream is proposed. We find that it would take $\sim6$ Myr or more for Phaethon to lose all of its internal ice (if ever there was) in its present orbit. Thus,…
The Geminids meteoroid stream produces one of the most intense meteor showers at Earth. It is an unusual stream in that its parent body is understood to be an asteroid, (3200) Phaethon, unlike most streams which are formed via ongoing…
We present a study of planet-crossing asteroid (3200) Phaethon at three successive perihelia in 2009, 2010 and 2012, using the NASA STEREO spacecraft. Phaethon is clearly detected in 2009 and 2012, but not in 2010. In both former years,…
We present space-based thermal infrared observations of the presumably Geminid-associated asteroids: (3200)Phaethon, 2005 UD and 1999 YC using WISE/NEOWISE. The images were taken at the four wavelength bands…
Context: Various ideas have been proposed to explain the formation of the Geminid meteoroid stream from the asteroid (3200) Phaethon. However, little has been studied about the Geminid formation based on the assumption that mass ejection…
We report the discovery of a comet-like tail on asteroid (3200) Phaethon when imaged at optical wavelengths near perihelion. In both 2009 and 2012, the tail appears >=350" (2.5x10^8 m) in length and extends approximately in the projected…
(3200) Phaethon is a compelling object as it has an asteroidal appearance and spectrum, produces a weak dust tail during perihelion at just 0.14 AU, and is the parent body of the Geminid Meteor Shower. A better understanding of the physical…
Context. (3200) Phaethon is a ~5-km-diameter near-Earth asteroid with a small perihelion distance of 0.14 au and is the parent body of the Geminids. JAXA's DESTINY+ mission will fly by Phaethon in the near future. Aims. We aim to support…
We present Hubble Space Telescope observations of the active asteroid (and Geminid stream parent) 3200 Phaethon when at its closest approach to Earth (separation 0.07 AU) in 2017 December. Images were recorded within $\sim$1\degr~of the…
We present a study of the active asteroid (3200) Phaethon in the 2016 apparition using the STEREO spacecraft and compare the results with data from the previous two perihelia in 2009 and 2012. Once again, Phaethon brightened by $\sim$2 mag…
Geminids are the most active annual meteor shower observed on Earth. Their parent is an active asteroid, (3200) Phaethon, which is a target of the planned DESTINY+ mission of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). The exact physical…
Asteroid 3200 Phaethon resembles a comet in some ways, including a highly-eccentric orbit (e=0.89) and a strong associated meteor shower (the Geminids). Yet this object has never been observed to exhibit any cometary activity, i.e., gas…
The near-Earth asteroid (3200) Phaethon is an intriguing object: its perihelion is at only 0.14 au and is associated with the Geminid meteor stream. We aim to use all available disk-integrated optical data to derive a reliable convex shape…