Search Publications
Investigating the formation of small Solar System objects using stellar occultations by satellites: present, future and its use to update satellite orbits
Sicardy, B.; Desmars, J.; Braga-Ribas, F. +2 more
The history of the outer solar system is intrinsically related to the Giant Planets migration. A massive disk of material within a radius of 30 au was scattered during the planetary migration, creating different dynamic populations in the Transneptunian region. They were formed in a collisional environment when massive collisions allowed them to g…
Centaur 29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 1 and its near-nucleus environment from a stellar occultation
Sicardy, B.; Ortiz, J. L.; Desmars, J. +9 more
Comets offer valuable insights into the early Solar System's conditions and processes. Stellar occultations enable detailed study of cometary nuclei typically hidden by their coma. Observing the star's light passing through the coma helps infer dust's optical depth near the nucleus and determine dust opacity detection limits. 29P/Schwassmann-Wachm…
Physical characteristics of Jupiter's Trojan (1437) Diomedes from a tri-chord stellar occultation in 2020 and dimensionless three-dimensional model
Sicardy, B.; Gomes-Júnior, A. R.; Ortiz, J. L. +15 more
Jupiter Trojans preserve primitive formation characteristics owing to their collisionless, stable orbits. Determination of their shapes and size-frequency distribution helps constrain the collisional evolution of their parent population, which also originated the Kuiper Belt. We started a programme to find precise sizes/shapes for Trojans, combini…
Occultation constraints on solar system formation models
Buie, Marc W.; Porter, Simon B.; Keller, John M. +1 more
The process by which a system of non-luminous bodies form around a star is fundamental to understanding the origins of our own solar system and how it fits into the context of other systems we have begun to study around other stars. Some basics of solar system formation have emerged to describe the process by which dust and gas around a newly form…