Search Publications
Synthesis of the morphological description of cometary dust at comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko
Lasue, J.; Langevin, Y.; Krüger, H. +28 more
Before Rosetta, the space missions Giotto and Stardust shaped our view on cometary dust, supported by plentiful data from Earth based observations and interplanetary dust particles collected in the Earth's atmosphere. The Rosetta mission at comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko was equipped with a multitude of instruments designed to study cometary dust…
Long-term monitoring of the outgassing and composition of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko with the Rosetta/MIRO instrument
Hartogh, P.; Lellouch, E.; Crovisier, J. +14 more
We present the analysis of ≈100 molecular maps of the coma of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko that were obtained with the MIRO submillimeter radiotelescope on board the Rosetta spacecraft. From the spectral line mapping of H216O, H218O, H217O, CH3OH, NH3, and C…
Dust of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko collected by Rosetta/MIDAS: classification and extension to the nanometer scale
Ehrenfreund, P.; Bentley, M. S.; Mannel, T. +9 more
Context. The properties of the smallest subunits of cometary dust contain information on their origin and clues to the formation of planetesimals and planets. Compared to interplanetary dust particles or particles collected during the Stardust mission, dust collected in the coma of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (67P) during the Rosetta mission p…
Aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons in comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko seen by ROSINA
Altwegg, K.; Balsiger, H.; Fuselier, S. A. +10 more
Context. Unlike all previous cometary space missions, the Rosetta spacecraft accompanied its target, comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, for more than two years on its way around the Sun. Thereby, an unexpected diversity and complexity of the chemical composition was revealed.
Aims: Our first step of decrypting the exact chemical composition of …
Distributed glycine in comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko
Lasue, J.; Altwegg, K.; Biver, N. +10 more
Most of the gaseous molecules that are detected in cometary atmospheres are produced through sublimation of nucleus ices. Distributed sources may also occur, that is, production within the coma, from the solid component of dust particles that are ejected from the nucleus. Glycine, the simplest amino acid, was observed episodically in the atmospher…
16O/18O ratio in water in the coma of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko measured with the Rosetta/ROSINA double-focusing mass spectrometer
De Keyser, Johan; Gombosi, Tamas I.; Berthelier, Jean-Jacques +11 more
The European Space Agency spacecraft Rosetta accompanied the Jupiter-family comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko for over 2 yr along its trajectory through the inner solar system. Between 2014 and 2016, it performed almost continuous in situ measurements of the comet's gaseous atmosphere in close proximity to its nucleus. In this study, the 16
Properties of small meteoroids studied by meteor video observations
Vojáček, V.; Borovička, J.; Koten, P. +2 more
Aims: The complex study of millimetre-sized meteoroids can reveal more about the structure and origin of population of these meteoroids.
Methods: Double-station video observations, paired with spectroscopic video observations, were used to study small meteoroids. In total 152 sporadic and shower meteors of maximum brightness between magn…
Linking surface morphology, composition, and activity on the nucleus of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko
Lamy, P. L.; Bertaux, J. -L.; Shi, X. +37 more
Aims: The Rosetta space probe accompanied comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko for more than two years, obtaining an unprecedented amount of unique data of the comet nucleus and inner coma. This has enabled us to study its activity almost continuously from 4 au inbound to 3.6 au outbound, including the perihelion passage at 1.24 au. This work focu…
Solar wind charge exchange in cometary atmospheres. III. Results from the Rosetta mission to comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko
Alho, Markku; Simon Wedlund, Cyril; Nilsson, Hans +12 more
Context. Solar wind charge-changing reactions are of paramount importance to the physico-chemistry of the atmosphere of a comet. The ESA/Rosetta mission to comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (67P) provides a unique opportunity to study charge-changing processes in situ.
Aims: To understand the role of these reactions in the evolution of the sola…
H/C elemental ratio of the refractory organic matter in cometary particles of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko
Alexander, C.; Hilchenbach, M.; Engrand, C. +11 more
Context. Because comets are part of the most primitive bodies of our solar system, establishing their chemical composition and comparing them to other astrophysical bodies gives new constraints on the formation and evolution of organic matter throughout the solar system. For two years, the time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometer COmetary Se…