Related papers: Efficiency characterization of the V-shape asteroi…
We use our home catalog of the asteroid proper elements to study the Karin family. The hierarchical clustering method provides formal identification with 3,863 members, but this set also includes objects from the neighboring Koronis2 and…
The Yarkovsky effect is a weak non-gravitational force leading to a small variation of the semi-major axis of an asteroid. Using radar measurements and astrometric observations, it is possible to measure a drift in semi-major axis through…
The Yarkovsky effect on real asteroids is complicated to calculate either by analytical or numerical methods, since they are generally irregular in shape. We propose an index to properly characterise the shape of any asteroid, through which…
In order to fully understand the shapes of asteroids families in the 3-dimensional space of the proper elements $(a_{\rm p}, e_{\rm p}, \sin I_{\rm p})$ it is necessary to compare observed asteroids with N-body simulations. To this point,…
The Karin cluster is a young asteroid family thought to have formed only $\simeq 5.75$~My ago. The young age can be demonstrated by numerically integrating the orbits of Karin cluster members backward in time and showing the convergence of…
The Yarkovsky effect is a thermal process acting upon the orbits of small celestial bodies, which can cause these orbits to slowly expand or contract with time. The effect is subtle (da/dt ~ 10^-4 au/My for a 1 km diameter object) and is…
The near-Earth asteroid population suggests the existence of an inner Main Belt source of asteroids that belongs to the spectroscopic X-complex and has moderate albedos. The identification of such a source has been lacking so far. We argue…
We continue our investigation of the bulk properties of asteroid dynamical families identified using only asteroid proper elements (Milani et al. 2014) to provide plausible collisional interpretations. We focus on cratering families…
The Nysa-Polana complex is a group of low-inclination asteroid families in the inner main belt, bounded in semimajor axis by the Mars-crossing region and the Jupiter 3:1 mean-motion resonance. This group is important as the most likely…
We study K-type asteroids in the broad surroundings of the Eos family because they seem to be intimately related, according to their colours measured by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Such `halos' of asteroid families have been rarely used…
The Rafita asteroid family is an S-type group located in the middle main belt, on the right side of the 3J:-1A mean-motion resonance. The proximity of this resonance to the family left side in semi-major axis caused many former family…
Asteroids smaller than about 100 meters are observed to rotate very fast, with periods often much shorter than the critical limit of 2.2 h. Some of these super-fast rotators can also achieve a very large semi-major axis drift induced by the…
Recent discoveries show that asteroids spinning in less than a few minutes undergo sizeable semi-major-axis drifts, possibly driven by the Yarkovsky effect. Analytical formulas can match these drifts only if very low thermal inertia is…
The asteroid (10) Hygiea is the fourth largest asteroid of the Main Belt, by volume and mass, and it is the largest member of its own family. Previous works investigated the long-term effects of close encounters with (10) Hygiea of…
The dynamical and physical properties of asteroid family members are widely used to reconstruct the collisional evolution of the main belt and of individual objects. Families offer insights into the properties of the parent bodies and the…
The spectral evolution of asteroid surfaces reflects the competition between space weathering and impact resurfacing. While previous studies focused primarily on age-dating, the role of family population size remains largely unexplored. We…
V-type asteroids are a taxonomic class whose surface is associated to a basaltic composition. The only known source of V-type asteroids in the Main Asteroid Belt is (4) Vesta, that is located in the inner part of the belt. However, many…
Young asteroid families are unique sources of information about fragmentation physics and the structure of their parent bodies, since their physical properties have not changed much since their birth. Families have different properties such…
A collisional family is a collection of >km-size asteroid fragments produced by a large scale collision between asteroids. Here we cataloged 335 notable collisional families in the main asteroid belt. When possible, we estimated each…
The study of asteroid families has provided tremendous insight into the forces that sculpted the main belt and continue to drive the collisional and dynamical evolution of asteroids. The identification of asteroid families within the NEO…