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On the Evolution and Activity of Cometary Nuclei

Bar-Nun, A.; Prialnik, D.

The thermal evolution of a spherical cometary nucleus (initial radius of 2.5 km), composed initially of very cold amorphous ice and moving in comet Halley's orbit, is simulated numerically for 280 revolutions. It is found that the phase transition from amorphous to crystalline ice constitutes a major internal heat source. This transition does not …