A Jupiter fragmented comet: Cause of the K/T boundary record

The extended period of mass extinctions around the K/T boundary correlating with extraterrestrial amino acids in the sediment record constitutes strong evidence of a cometary cause. The input of extraterrestrial matter over 10⁵ yr supports the hypothesis of a giant comet, fragmented into subcomets on close encounter with Jupiter, and subsequently perturbed into Earth-crossing orbits. Copious amounts of dust were emitted via this and possibly successive fragmenting encounters, and via normal cometary evaporation. The dynamics of dust from the disintegrating comet fragments favours retention in Earth-crossing orbits of the sub-micron fraction of organic composition. The shroud of dust accreted in the Earth's upper atmosphere varied with time and imposed climatic stresses that caused species extinctions over 10⁵ yr. While the iridium peak in the sediments coincides with the Chicxulub crater impactor, other iridium detail suggests that some of the impactor material was reinjected into space and in part re-accreted by Earth from the interplanetary orbits.School of Mathematics, University of Wales College of Cardiff.     

P/2008 T1 (Boattini): Another comet under transition from Saturn to Jupiter

The newly discovered periodic comet P/2008 T1 (Boattini) is found to have experienced a recent capture into its present orbit, following a close approach to Saturn in 1995 to within 0.17 AU. This orbital change transferred the comet into an orbit tangent to that of Jupiter, which lead to an even closer passage within 0.02 AU with that planet in 2003 decoupling it from the influence of Saturn (© 2010 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

P/2010 TO20 LINEAR-Grauer: A comet in transition from Centaurs to the Jupiter family

The object P/2010 TO20 LINEAR-Grauer, discovered at a heliocentric distance of over 5 AU, and at first classified as a Trojan, is now believed to be a comet. This paper reports special observations of the object that have allowed a significant refinement of its orbit and investigation of its dynamic evolution. It is shown that P/2010 TO20 LINEAR-Grauer is not a Trojan yet demonstrates unusual dynamic features. In particular, the object moves in a temporary satellite orbit relative to Jupiter over the observation interval. The comet has been in the Hill sphere for about two years and has made one revolution around the planet. The jovicentric distance function has two minima, and the smallest distance is 0.075 AU. Our estimates show that, with a probability of 0.76, the comet is likely to move in a Jupiter family orbit with a perihelion distance of less than 2.5 AU. The average time for such a transition is around forty thousand years.     

Peculiar oscillations in the microwave emission of Jupiter during the impact of K fragment of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9

In this article we report the peculiar oscillations in the intensity of microwave (4.15 GHz) emission seen during the impact of K fragment of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 on July 19, 1994. The oscillations begin at 10h 13m 25s UT suddenly with a frequency of ~0.3 Hz and gradually the frequency of these oscillations increases to ~ 1 Hz. The oscillations are not due to local atmosphere or the radio interference from signals of geostationary satellite. They are intrinsic to the microwave emission from Jupiter during the impact of K fragment. Peak-to-peak amplitude of the oscillations is about 34% of the total microwave emission from Jupiter. If we assume that only 50% of the microwave emission is non-thermal and only the non-thermal emission suffered oscillations, then the oscillations are about 68% of the non-thermal emission from Jupiter. The observations also indicate that there are three continuum enhancements during this event and periodic oscillations almost all through. The third enhancement was the largest and during this enhancement there were some additional aperiodic variations. The aperiodic variations were of the order of few minutes and were possibly generated by the gravity waves. The periodic oscillations could be synchrotron emission modulated by the plasma oscillation in the outer magnetosphere. kg]Key words     

Electromagnetic radiation outbursts from the collision of P/Shoemaker-Levy 9 comet with Jupiter

The forthcoming collision by debris of P/Shoemaker-Levy 9 comet with Jupiter during the week of July 18, 1994 has generated considerable scientific and public interest. This collision may release an amount of energy ranging from 10²⁵-10³¹ ergs in the Jovian atmosphere. Two possible phenomena associated with this event are described in this Letter to the Editor. The first one is the likely display of deformed Jovian magnetic field lines as the comet interacts with the Jovian magnetosphere. The second one is electromagnetic radiation outbursts during comet explosions over a wide frequency range from radio up to gamma ray emissions. If relativistic electrons with energies up to ~ 1000 MeV could be produced during comet explosions, then synchrotron radiations with frequencies from radio up to infrared range could be detectable. Hard X-rays and gamma rays could be produced by bremsstrahlung and inverse Compton processes. Since one cannot exclude the possible transient presence of relativistic electrons with Lorentz factor 2 × 10⁶, synchrotron radiation component might even be extended into gamma ray frequency range during intermittent short time intervals.     

Submicron dust and the collision of comet SL-9 with Jupiter

Sub-micron sized dust grains released from the several fragments of the comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 could produce significant observable effects on the colour of the Jovian surface. Analysis of photometric data could lead to important insights into the nature and quantity of the dust, as well as the release mechanisms involved.     

The impact of comet SL9 with Jupiter: IR observations at TIRGO

Infrared images of Jupiter have been obtained on 5 nights before, during and shortly after the period of the impacts of the fragments of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 (1993e) with the giant planet. Long lived bright spots produced by the impacts have been measured and analyzed. By measuring the intensity variation of the spots as a function of Jupiter rotation we show that these spots are likely constituted by large and thin clouds of dust located above the methane layer. The IR relative albedos has been also measured for some of these spots.On leave from Center for Astrophysics - Cambridge (USA)     

Evidence of earth catastrophe by anomalous shocked quartz at the K/T boundary

Anomalous shocked quartz with high density (less than 1 % of density-deviation) is considered to be a relict of ultra high-pressure at meteoritic impact. The shocked quartz grains can be found only in terrestrial and artificial impact craters, meteorites and the Cretaceous-Tertiary (K/T) boundary samples. Volcanic activity is considered to be started or accelerated by enormous impact event.     

P/2004 A1 (Loneos) – a comet under transition from Saturn to Jupiter

The newly discovered periodic comet P/2004 A1 (LONEOS) is found to have experienced a recent capture into its present orbit, following a close approach to Saturn in 1992 to within 0.032 AU. This induced orbital change transfered the comet into an orbit tangent to that of Jupiter, which will, after a close passage in 2026, gain control by further decoupling it from the influence of Saturn. A long‐term orbital investigation yields support that the comet is on its first sojourn into the inner solar system. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Magnetic analysis of K/T boundary layer clay from Stevns Klint,Denmark

Abstract— Following the distribution at The 53rd Annual Meeting of the Meteoritical Society of 40 kg of Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary layer clay (Fish Clay) recovered from Stevns Klint, Denmark, a magnetic analysis of both the coarse and fine fractions was carried out. The magnetic mineralogy was found to be complex, consisting of single-domain magnetite and fine-grained sulphides of Fe. The Fe sulphide was present as ferrimagnetic pyrrhotite (Fe₇S₈) and other sulphides that decayed on heating to produce magnetite. A magnetic fraction of the material was separated by using a strong hand magnet. The separate from the coarse fraction was found to contain low-Ni, Fe (T_C=750–770 °C) in trace quantities. Since contamination seems unlikely, it must be concluded that the Fe has an extraterrestrial origin. Whilst partially-degraded cosmic spherules may add to the signal, their input is believed to be insignificant. The other obvious source is debris from the vapourization of a K/T impactor.     

The impact of fragment “L” of comet SL-9 on Jupiter

Filtergrams of high spatial and temporal resolution were obtained in the methane band centred at 892 nm during the impact of fragment L of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 on Jupiter. The light curve shows two maxima of an emission ball observed above the limb shortly after the impact. The second maximum was the brightest and had a short life time of about 90 seconds. During it's life, the apparent height of the emission ball declined towards the surface of Jupiter; the amount of displacement is larger than the expected effect caused by Jupiter's rotation. About half an hour after the impact, a domelike feature became visible when the location of the impact rotated into the illuminated hemisphere of Jupiter.     

Observation of collision of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 with Jupiter at the Astronomical and Geophysical Observatory in Modra

A report about observations of collision of the comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 with Jupiter is presented. The observations were made both in optical and radio wavelengths. Some consequences of impacts of individual fragments of the comet were detected visually in the 20-cm refractor. 21 days prolonged series of records on a video tape was taken in the focus of the 60-cm reflector, too. 13 serious events from July 16, 1994 to July 23, 1994 on 42.7 MHz radio wavelengths were registered. Its coherence with the pair Shoemaker-Levy 9 and Jupiter in the interaction is the subject of further investigation. More comprehensive results will be published after collecting information about similar observations on radio waves all over the world.     

Radar observations of 8P/Tuttle: A contact-binary comet

Arecibo radar imagery of Comet 8P/Tuttle reveals a 10-km-long nucleus with a highly bifurcated shape consistent with a contact binary. A separate echo component was also detected from large (>cm-size), slow-moving grains of the type expected to contribute to the Ursid meteor stream.     

Broadband lane structures in the decametric spectra of Jupiter and the scintillation boundary

Dynamic spectra of Jovian noise storms at 20–30 MHz are compared with the scintillation indices of the overhead radio source Cas A at 45 MHz. Of six intense storms observed, four that displayed broadband lane patterns occurred on nights when the scintillation index of Cas A was unusually low, while two that did not display broadband lane structures occurred on nights when the scintillation index was high. It is evident that the scintillation boundary was located north of Oulu on the nights when the broadband lane patterns occurred and was therefore not involved in the lane-producing mechanism.     

Search for effects of comet S-L 9 fragment impacts on low radio frequency emission from Jupiter

Decametric radio observations of Jupiter were made before, during, and after the impacts of the fragments of the comet S-L 9 with the planet, from the University of Florida Radio Observatory, the Maipu Radio Astronomy Observatory of the University of Chile, and the Owens Valley Radio Observatory of the California Institute of Technology. The decametric radiation was monitored at frequencies from 16.7 to 32 MHz. The minimum detectable flux densities were on the order of 30 kJy, except for that of the large 26.3 MHz array in Florida, which was about 1 kJy. There was no significant enhancement or suppression of the decametric L-burst or S-burst emission with respect to normal activity patterns that might be attributed to the fragment entries. However, a burst of left-hand elliptically polarized radiation having a considerably longer duration than an L-burst was observed almost simultaneously with the impact of the large fragment Q2, and another with right-hand elliptical polarization was observed simultaneously with Q1. We consider the possibility that these two bursts were emitted just above the local electron cyclotron frequencies from the southern and northern ends, respectively, of magnetic flux tubes that had been excited in some way by the proximity of fragments Q2 and Q1.In addition to the monitoring of the decametric radiation, a search was conducted for possible comet-enhanced Jovian synchrotron radiation at 45 MHz using a large dipole antenna array at the observatory in Chile. This frequency is above the cutoff of the decametric radiation, but is considerably below the lowest frequency at which the synchrotron emission has previously been detected. The minimum detectable flux density with the 45 MHz antenna was about 5 Jy. No synchrotron emission at all was found before, during, or after the entry of the comet fragments.     

C/2015 O1: A long-period comet with photometric observations

In this work, we report the observations of the long-period comet C/2015 O1 performed on2018 January 29–30 and April 13 with the Nanshan 1-meter wide-field telescope operated by Xinjiang Astronomical Observatory. We obtain the morphological features of C/2015 O1 using an image enhancement method, and calculate the dust-activity parameter Afρ and the coma color based on photometric analysis. An obvious fan-shaped structure was observed at different observation times. We find that the activity of C/2015 O1 gradually decreases as the comet advances toward perihelion and the observed B-V and V-R colors are consistent with those of other comets.     

Composition of 298 Baptistina: Implications for the K/T impactor link

Abstract— Bottke et al. (2007) suggested that the breakup of the Baptistina asteroid family (BAF) 160⁺³⁰/_‐20 Myr ago produced an “asteroid shower” that increased by a factor of 2–3 the impact flux of kilometer‐sized and larger asteroids striking the Earth over the last ?120 Myr. This result led them to propose that the impactor that produced the Cretaceous/Tertiary (K/T) mass extinction event 65 Myr ago also may have come from the BAF. This putative link was based both on collisional/dynamical modeling work and on physical evidence. For the latter, the available broadband color and spectroscopic data on BAF members indicate many are likely to be dark, low albedo asteroids. This is consistent with the carbonaceous chondrite‐like nature of a 65 Myr old fossil meteorite (Kyte 1998) and with chromium from K/T boundary sediments with an isotopic signature similar to that from CM2 carbonaceous chondrites. To test elements of this scenario, we obtained near‐IR and thermal IR spectroscopic data of asteroid 298 Baptistina using the NASA IRTF in order to determine surface mineralogy and estimate its albedo. We found that the asteroid has moderately strong absorption features due to the presence of olivine and pyroxene, and a moderately high albedo (?20%). These combined properties strongly suggest that the asteroid is more like an S‐type rather than Xc‐type (Mothé‐Diniz et al. 2005). This weakens the case for 298 Baptistina being a CM2 carbonaceous chondrite and its link to the K/T impactor. We also observed several bright (V Mag. ≤16.8) BAF members to determine their composition.     

A peculiar family of Jupiter Trojans: The Eurybates

The Eurybates family is a compact core inside the Menelaus clan, located in the L₄ swarm of Jupiter Trojans. Fornasier et al. (Fornasier, S., Dotto, E., Hainaut, O., Marzari, F., Boehnhardt, H., De Luise, F., Barucci, M.A. [2007]. Icarus 190, 622-642) found that this family exhibits a peculiar abundance of spectrally flat objects, similar to Chiron-like Centaurs and C-type main belt asteroids. On the basis of the visible spectra available in literature, Eurybates family’s members seemed to be good candidates for having on their surfaces water/water ice or aqueous altered materials.To improve our knowledge of the surface composition of this peculiar family, we carried out an observational campaign at the Telescopio Nazionale Galileo (TNG), obtaining near-infrared spectra of 7 members. Our data show a surprisingly absence of any spectral feature referable to the presence of water, ices or aqueous altered materials on the surface of the observed objects. Models of the surface composition are attempted, evidencing that amorphous carbon seems to dominate the surface composition of the observed bodies and some amount of silicates (olivine) could be present.     

Yellow impact glass from the K/T boundary at Beloc (Haiti): XANES determination of the Fe oxidation state and implications for formation conditions

Abstract— We determined the iron oxidation state and coordination number in five samples of yellow impact glass from the Cretaceous‐Tertiary (K/T) boundary section at Beloc, Haiti, which formed as the result of impact melting during the Chicxulub impact event. The samples were analyzed by Fe K‐edge XANES spectroscopy and the results were compared with published data on eight black impact glasses and one high Si‐K impact spherule from the same impact layer. The pre‐edge peak of our high‐resolution XANES spectra displays evident variations indicative of significant changes in the Fe oxidation state, spanning a wide range from about 75 to 100 mole% Fe³⁺. Yellow K/T glasses have significantly higher Fe³⁺/(Fe²⁺ + Fe³⁺) ratios compared to black K/T impact glasses (from 20 to 75 mole% Fe³⁺) and high Si‐K glass (20 mole% Fe³⁺). In particular, all the pre‐edge peak data on these three types of impact glasses plot between two mixing lines joining a point calculated as the mean of a group of tektites studied so far (consisting of ^[4]Fe²⁺ and ^[5]Fe²⁺) to ^[4]Fe³⁺ and ^[5]Fe³⁺, respectively. Thus, the XANES spectra of the yellow K/T glasses can be interpreted as a mixture of ^[4]Fe^{2+, [5]}Fe^{2+, [4]}Fe³⁺, and ^[5]Fe³⁺. Our observations can be explained by a very large range of oxygen fugacity conditions during melt formation. Furthermore, there is a clear positive relationship between the Fe³⁺/(Fe²⁺ + Fe³⁺) ratio and the Ca content of these glasses, suggesting that the Fe oxidation state was influenced by the relative contribution of Ca‐sulfate‐ and Ca‐carbonate‐bearing sedimentary rocks at the impact site.