Search Publications
Structure and elastic parameters of the near surface of Abydos site on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, as obtained by SESAME/CASSE listening to the MUPUS insertion phase
Knollenberg, J.; Knapmeyer, M.; Fischer, H. -H. +5 more
The accelerometers of the SESAME/CASSE instrument aboard Rosetta's lander Philae recorded surface waves produced during the MUPUS hammering phase. After presenting evidence that all feet of Philae were in contact with the ground, we analyze group arrival time differences between the three feet of Philae and obtain a Rayleigh wave velocity between …
An analysis of the geodesy and relativity experiments of BepiColombo
Iess, Luciano; Imperi, Luigi; Mariani, Mirco J.
BepiColombo is a ESA-JAXA mission aimed to a comprehensive exploration of Mercury, the innermost planet of the solar system. The Mercury Orbiter Radio science Experiment (MORE) will exploit a state of the art microwave tracking system, including an advanced Ka-band transponder, to determine the gravity field and the rotational state of the planet,…
Laboratory simulations of the Vis-NIR spectra of comet 67P using sub-µm sized cosmochemical analogues
Kappel, D.; Bockelée-Morvan, D.; Capaccioni, F. +16 more
Laboratory spectral measurements of relevant analogue materials were performed in the framework of the Rosetta mission in order to explain the surface spectral properties of comet 67P. Fine powders of coal, iron sulphides, silicates and their mixtures were prepared and their spectra measured in the Vis-IR range. These spectra are compared to a ref…
Olivine-bearing lithologies on the Moon: Constraints on origins and transport mechanisms from M3 spectroscopy, radiative transfer modeling, and GRAIL crustal thickness
Corley, Laura M.; McGovern, Patrick J.; Kramer, Georgiana Y. +8 more
High-resolution hyperspectral data from Chandrayaan-1's Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) allow detection of olivine on the lunar surface. Olivine exposed at the surface may originate as mantle material or igneous products (intrusive or extrusive). Potential transport mechanisms include excavation of the mantle or lower crustal material by im…
A revised shape model of asteroid (216) Kleopatra
Nolan, Michael C.; Springmann, Alessondra; Scheeres, Daniel J. +8 more
We used three different sets of Arecibo delay-Doppler radar images and five well-covered occultations to generate a revised three-dimensional shape model of asteroid (216) Kleopatra with a spatial resolution of ∼10 km. We find Kleopatra to be a bi-lobate contact binary of overall dimensions 276 × 94 × 78 km ± 15% and equivalent diameter Deq
Investigating the volcanic versus aqueous origin of the surficial deposits in Eastern Elysium Planitia, Mars
Voigt, Joana R. C.; Hamilton, Christopher W.
The Elysium Volcanic Province consists of numerous overlapping flow units and may include the youngest lava flows on Mars. However, it is possible that these volcanic units have been modified or overprinted by aqueous processes. Understanding the timing of the igneous and aqueous events in this region is therefore essential for constraining the ge…
Limb clouds and dust on Mars from images obtained by the Visual Monitoring Camera (VMC) onboard Mars Express
Hueso, R.; Sánchez-Lavega, A.; Titov, D. +6 more
The Visual Monitoring Camera (VMC) onboard the Mars Express (MEx) spacecraft is a simple camera aimed to monitor the release of the Beagle-2 lander on Mars Express and later used for public outreach. Here, we employ VMC as a scientific instrument to study and characterize high altitude aerosols events (dust and condensates) observed at the Martian…
Charged particles radiation measurements with Liulin-MO dosimeter of FREND instrument aboard ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter during the transit and in high elliptic Mars orbit
Zelenyi, Lev; Semkova, Jordanka; Koleva, Rositza +21 more
ExoMars is a joint ESA-Rosscosmos program for investigating Mars. Two missions are foreseen within this program: one consisting of the Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO), that carries scientific instruments for the detection of trace gases in the Martian atmosphere and for the location of their source regions, plus an Entry, Descent and landing demonstrator …
PRIMASS visits Hilda and Cybele groups
De Prá, M. N.; Pinilla-Alonso, N.; Carvano, J. M. +5 more
The Cybele and Hilda dynamical groups delimit the outer edge of the asteroid belt. Their compositional distribution is a key element to constrain evolutionary models of the Solar System. In this paper, we present a compositional analysis of these populations using spectroscopic observations, SDSS and NEOWISE data. As part of the PRIMASS (Primitive…
Expected spectral characteristics of (101955) Bennu and (162173) Ryugu, targets of the OSIRIS-REx and Hayabusa2 missions
Pinilla-Alonso, N.; Licandro, J.; Campins, H. +9 more
NASA's OSIRIS-REx and JAXA's Hayabusa2 sample-return missions are currently on their way to encounter primitive near-Earth asteroids (101955) Bennu and (162173) Ryugu, respectively. Spectral and dynamical evidence indicates that these near-Earth asteroids originated in the inner part of the main belt. There are several primitive collisional famili…