Investigation of surface homogeneity of (3200) Phaethon

  • Published : 2018.10.10

Abstract

We present observational evidence of the surface homogeneity on Phaethon based on the time-series multi-band photometry and spectrometry. The observations of Phaethon were conducted in Nov.-Dec. 2017. We confirmed that Phaethon is a B-type asteroid, as was previously known, and its rotational color variation was not detected. During our observation period, the sub-solar latitude of this asteroid was approximately $55^{\circ}S$, corresponding to the southern hemisphere of the body. Thus, we found that the southern hemisphere of Phaethon has a homogeneous surface from our observation results. In addition, we compared our spectra with archival data to investigate the latitudinal surface properties of the asteroid. The result showed that it doesn't have a latitudinal color variation. To verify this assumption, we investigated its solar-radiation heating effect, and the result suggested that this asteroid underwent a uniform thermal metamorphism regardless of latitude, which is consistent with our observations. Based on this result, we discuss the homogeneity of the surface of the body.

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