• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.73.2-73.2
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• 2018

The Hayabusa remote-sensing images of near-Earth asteroid (25143) Itokawa exhibited large diversity in spectral properties. The evidence suggests a various degrees of space weathering on the surface. It is known that the space weathering changes the spectra of S-type asteroids redder and reduces the depths of absorption around $1{\mu}m$. It is therefore possible to determine the surface ages through the investigation of the degree of space weathering. It is, however, reported that the scattered light components severely degrade the Asteroid Multiband Imaging Camera (AMICA) images, especially at the wavelengths > $0.86{\mu}m$. Our team came up with a technique for subtracting the scattered light components (Ishiguro 2014). Here, we upgraded the techniqu e by applying simplex algorism to correct the artifacts for all AMICA bands. This new technique enables to apply for the longest channel (i.e., zs-band at $1.01{\mu}m$) images, which was not studied so far. With the AMICA all bands data, we estimated the surface ages at the different location to be 0.6-2 Myr. Based on this data together with the geological information (e.g. gravitational potentials and local). we will discuss about the evolution of surface materials on the asteroid.

• The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.46 no.2
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• pp.57.4-58
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• 2021

Asteroids have undergone various processes such as impacts, space weathering, and thermal evolution. Because they expose their surfaces to space without atmosphere, these evolutional processes have been recorded directly on their surfaces. The remote-sensing observations have been conducted to reveal these evolutional histories of the target asteroids. For example, crater and boulder distributions are unambiguous evidence for past nondestructive impacts with other celestial bodies. Multiband and spectroscopic observations have revealed space-weathering history (as well as compositions). Whereas most physical quantities have been examined intensively using spacecraft and telescopes, only a little has been studied on "the grain size". It is one of the fundamental physical quantities for diagnosing the collisional and thermal history of asteroids. Our group has conducted polarimetric research of asteroids (as well as Moon [1]) to determine the particle size and further investigate the evolutional histories of target asteroids [2],[3]. For example, the existence of regolith on an S-type asteroid, Toutatis, was suggested almost twenty years before space exploration [4]. Moreover, we reported that near-Sun asteroids indicate a signature of submillimeter grains, which could be created by a thermal sintering process by solar radiation [5]. However, it is important to note that in-situ polarimetry has not been reported on the asteroid surface, although the Korean Lunar Exploration Program aims to do polarimetry on the lunar surface [6]. Therefore, it is expected that the polarizer mounted on the Korean Apophis spacecraft can make the first estimate of the grain size and its regional variation over the Apophis surface. In this presentation, we outline research of S-type asteroid surfaces through remote-sensing observations and consider the role of polarimetry. Based on this review, we consider the purpose, potentiality, and strategy of the polarimetry using the onboard device for the Apophis spacecraft. We will report a possible polarization phase curve of Apophis estimated from ordinary chondrites and past observational data of S-type asteroids, taking account of the space weathering effect. Based on this estimation, we will consider the strategy of how to determine the particle size (and space weathering degree) of the Apophis surface. We will also mention the detectability of dust hovering on the surface.