Comet formation in molecular clouds

The observed properties of the long-period comet system, and its periodic disturbance by galactic forces manifesting as terrestrial impact episodes, may be indicative of a comet capture/escape cycle as the Solar System orbits the Galaxy. A mean number density of comets in molecular clouds of ～10^?1±1 AU^?3 is implied. This is sufficient to deplete metals from the gaseous component of the interstellar medium, as observed, but leads to the problem of how stars are formed nevertheless with solar metal abundances. Formation of comets prior to stars in dense systems of near-zero energy may be indicated, and isotope signatures in cometary particles may be diagnostic of conditions in young spiral arm material.     

Relationship of comets and planets

We analyze our earlier data on the numerical integration of the equations of motion for 274 short-period comets (with the period P<200 yr) on a time interval of 6000 yr. As many as 54 comets had no close approaches to planets, 13 comets passed through the Saturnian sphere of action, and one comet passed through the Uranian sphere of action. The orbital elements of these 68 comets changed by no more than ±3 percent in a space of 6000 yr. As many as 206 comets passed close to Jupiter. We confirm Everhart’s conclusion that Jupiter can capture long-period comets with q = 4–6 AU and i < 9° into short-period orbits. We show that nearly parabolic comets cross the solar system mainly in the zone of terrestrial planets. No relationship of nearly parabolic comets and terrestrial planets was found for the epoch of the latest apparition of comets. Guliev’s conjecture about two trans-Plutonian planets is based on the illusory excess of cometary nodes at large heliocentric distances. The existence of cometary nodes at the solar system periphery turns out to be a solely geometrical effect.     

Towards a Dynamical History of ‘Proto-Encke‘

There are too few active comets to account for the observed zodiacal dust. Rather we look to the collisional fragmentation and erosion of sub-kilometre meteoroids in orbit close to the ecliptic. Since 1975 we have also been aware of an apparently massive meteoroidal swarm in probable 7:2 mean motion resonance with Jupiter, seemingly at the heart of the Taurid Complex and connecting therefore with the near-ecliptic system through the so-called Štohl Stream. The notable absence of pre-1786 apparitions of 2P/Encke took on a new significance with the 1983 detection by IRAS of its asymmetric trail inside this resonance. Thus it was possible all these meteoroidal components were ultimately derived from a continuously eroded, substantially dormant, librating progenitor within the trail whose more volatile inclusions are exposed from time to time and expelled either singly or severally as independent comets. A Taurid progenitor of this kind (proto-Encke) dominating the inner Solar System environment probably then accounts for most of the recorded enhancements of the larger meteoroid flux to Earth, including ‘Tunguska’ bodies as well. Terrestrial dust insertions which control mean temperature and hence climate are also inferred based upon the libration and nodal precession half-periods of proto-Encke (∼0.2 kyr, ∼2.5 kyr respectively) albeit the longer of these cycles was not at first evident in the terrestrial record (Asher & Clube 1993). Recently however this cycle appears to have been confirmed as a significant (long term) global warming/meridional atmospheric circulation / iceberg calving cycle with the correct phase producing the so-called mini-Heinrich and Heinrich events of the Holocene and late Upper Pleistocene respectively, i.e., during the past ∼60 kyr BP. The comparative stability of this terrestrial cycle, in contrast with the weakness of the observed resonance, suggests a fairly recent diversion therefore from a much stronger sungrazing 7:2 Jovian resonance in which proto-Encke's and Jupiter's longitudes of perihelion are related by ϖ pE ≈ ϖ J or ϖ J + π. Thus both the Hephaistos Stream and the Taurid Complex could have formed together during a recent close planetary encounter, say with Mercury ∼5 kyr BP. It follows that we envisage a single large progenitor in 7:2 Jovian sungrazing resonance for 50 kyr or so which undergoes repeated tidal stress: a continuous dust-induced major glaciation is thus sustained on Earth for most of this dynamical timescale before a disruptive planetgrazing event finally brings its sungrazing status to an end and produces the present meteoroidal complex. This evolutionary sequence almost certainly requires that the original sungrazing stream still exists (without its source): a potentially significant fact because it may have a direct bearing on both the observed zodiacal bands and the original progenitor orbit as well as the known periodic variation of solar radiance and convected magnetic field, of possible relevance to the solar cycle. While these aspects have to be further explored, the purpose of the present investigation is to describe some preliminary modelling with a view to inferring the likely dynamical history of proto-Encke. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

X-Ray Emission From Comet Hale–Bopp

The discovery of X-ray emission from comets has created a number of questions about the physical mechanism producing the radiation. There are now a variety of explanations for the emission, from thermal bremsstrahlung of electrons off neutrals or dust, to charge exchange induced emission from solar wind ions, to scattering of solar X-rays from attogram dust, to reconnection of solar magnetic field lines. In an effort to understand this new phenomenon, we observed but failed to detect in the X-ray the very dusty and active comet C/Hale-Bopp 1995 O1 over a two year period, September 1996 to December 1997, using the ROSAT HRI imaging photometer at 0.1–2.0 keV and the ASCA SIS imaging spectrometer at 0.5–10.0 keV. The results of our Hale-Bopp non-detections, when combined with spectroscopic imaging 0.08–1.0 keV observations of the comet by EUVE and BeppoSAX, show that the emission has the same spectral shape and strong variability seen in other comets. Comparison of the ROSAT photometry of the comet to our ROSAT database of 8 comets strongly suggests that the overall X-ray faintness of the comet was due to an emission mechanism coupled to gas, and not dust, in the comet’s coma. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

From a Weak to a Strong Comet – 3d Global Hybrid Simulation Studies

Plasma structures resulting from the solar wind interaction with weakcomets are discussed. Numericalsimulations using a newly developed hybrid code are presented. The simulations are primarily applied to quantitative data for cometWirtanen, which will be the target of the Rosetta mission. It isexpected that Wirtanen is very weak during the first encounter. The main purpose is the discussion of the different features of the plasmaenvironment, such as the structured cycloidal plasma tail and non-linear Mach cones typical for weak comets and their relation tostructures like shocklets, bow shock, diamagnetic cavity and the “classical”magnetotail found at stronger comets. Furthermore, the sensitivity ofthese various features in dependence on the plasma parameters is investigated.     

Large Dust Grains Around Cometary Nuclei

Large amounts of particles ejected from the nucleus surface are present in the vicinity of the cometary nuclei when comets are near the Sun (at heliocentric distances ≤2 AU). The largest dust grains ejected may constitute a hazard for spatial vehicles. We tried to obtain the bounded orbits of those particles and to investigate their stability along several orbital periods. The model includes the solar and the cometary gravitational forces and the solar radiation pressure force. The nucleus is assumed to be spherical. The dust grains are also assumed to be spherical, and radially ejected. We include the effects of centrifugal forces owing to the comet rotation. An expression for the most heavy particles that can be lifted is proposed. Using the usual values adopted for the case of Halley’s comet, the largest grains that can be lifted have a diameter about 5 cm, and the term due to the rotation is negligible. However, that term increases the obtained value for the maximum diameter of the lifted grain in a significant amount when the rotation period is of the order of a few hours.     

First Results from SWAN Lyman α solar wind mapper on SOHO

After one year of almost flawless operation on board the SOHO spacecraft poised at L1 Lagrange point, we report the main features of SWAN observations. SWAN is mainly dedicated to the monitoring of the latitude distribution of the solar wind by the Lα method. Maps of sky Lα emissions were recorded througout the year. The region of maximum emission, located in the upwind hemisphere, deviates strongly from the pattern that could be expected from a solar wind constant with latitude. It is divided into two lobes by a depression aligned with the solar equatorial plane called the Lyα groove already noted in 1976 Prognoz data. The north lobe is much brighter than the south lobe. These two characteristics can be explained qualitatively by an enhanced ionization along the neutral sheet where the slow solar wind is concentrated, which results from the higher low-latitude solar wind mass flux as measured by Ulysses. The groove is the direct imprint on the sky of the enhanced carving by the slow solar wind, at this time of solar minimum, when the tilt angle of the neutral sheet is small. The question is still pending to predict what will happen with the ascending phase of the solar cycle. Observations of comets are briefly mentioned, with the ability of SWAN to monitor the H₂O production of many comets. Operations of the instrument are briefly described, including some instrumental problems which could be solved by software modifications sent to the instrument. Supplementary material to this paper is available in electronic form at http://dx.doi.org/10.1023/A:1004979605559     

Planetary impact probabilities for long-period comets

Planetary impact probabilities for long-period (near-parabolic) comets are determined by averaging Öpik's equations over inclination and perihelion distance for each planet. These averaged values compare well with the results of more elaborate Monte Carlo calculations. The impact probabilities are proportional to the square of the normalized capture radius of each planet, which in turn is a function of the planet's radius and mass, so that the major planets have the highest impact probabilities. Encounter velocities have an average value of $\text{3}\text{1}\text{2}$ times the planetary orbital velocity but the most probable encounter velocities are slightly higher than this for the terrestrial planets and slightly lower for the major planets. Comparison of the impact probabilities with the cratering record, corrected for gravity and velocity effects, indicates that long-period comets may account for 3 to 9% of the observed large crattes (diameter > 10 km) on the terrestrial planets. The inclination and perihelion properties of the impact probabilities obtained from numerical averaging provide a simple method for determining the impact probabilities for nonuniform distributions. The perihelion distribution of long period comets from J. A. Fernandez ((1981) Astron. Astrophys.96, 26–35) results in a crater production rate quite similar throughout the solar system, unlike that of a uniform perihelion distribution.     

Relative motions of fragments of the split comets.: I. A new approach

A new approach is formulated for the study of motions of the split comets. It is based on the assumption that two fragments of a comet separate at a rate that is determined primarily by a slight difference between their effective solar attractions rather than by the impulse imparted on them at the time of splitting. The net dynamical effect is interpreted as due to differential nongravitational forces, which depend on the size, density, structure, composition, and spin rate of the fragments. Since at least at smaller distances from the Sun these forces vary inversely as roughly the square of heliocentric distance, their dynamical effect resembles that of radiation pressure, so that the formalism developed for the motion of a dust particle in a cometary tail is applicable in principle. The calculations show that this approach provides reasonably good to excellent fits of the observed separations for a great majority of the split comets, and that it fails only in the case of Comet 1957 VI. The correlation between the differential nongravitational forces and the endurance of the fragment is investigated in terms of the physical behavior of the fragments, with the emphasis on the short-lived objects. Some of the unusual phenomena accompanying the split comets are discussed, and comments are also offered on the sequence of splitting for comets with multiple nuclei and on the distribution of the points of splitting in space.     

A comparison of the continuum spectra of four comets

The continuum spectra of comets carry information concerning the physical and chemical properties of solid coma grains. Although it is not feasible to use the continuum spectra to uniquely characterize the solid grains, variations among the continua of different comets may reveal subtle differences in their respective grain populations. We have taken and reduced optical spectra of four comets in the wavelength range 3700–7300 Å using a single observing system and reduction procedure. The continua all appear reddened with respect to the solar spectrum. The amount of reddening is consistent with a prevalence of ～2-μm-sized grains in all four comets, if the refractive indices of the grains are approximately equal to those of terrestrial rocks. Significant color differences were measured among the comets. Different intrinsic grain properties are suggested since the scattering geometries were very similar. The amount of reddening does not appear to be correlated with the amount of dust in the coma.     

Oxygen isotopic composition of an enstatite ribbon of probable cometary origin

Filamentary enstatite crystals are found in interplanetary dust particles (IDPs) of likely cometary origin but are very rare or absent in meteorites. Crystallographic characteristics of filamentary enstatites indicate that they condensed directly from vapor. We measured the O isotopic composition of an enstatite ribbon from a giant cluster IDP to be δ¹⁸O = 25 ± 55, δ¹⁷O = ?19 ± 129, ?¹⁷O = ?32 ± 134 (2σ errors), which is inconsistent at the 2σ level with the composition of the Sun inferred from the Genesis solar wind measurements. The particle's O isotopic composition, consistent with the terrestrial composition, implies that it condensed from a gas of nonsolar O isotopic composition, possibly as a result of vaporization of disk region enriched in ¹⁶O‐depleted solids. The relative scarcity of filamentary enstatite in asteroids compared to comets implies either that this crystal condensed from dust vaporized in situ in the outer solar system where comets formed or it condensed in the inner solar system and was subsequently transported outward to the comet‐forming region.     

DuneXpress

The DuneXpress observatory will characterize interstellar and interplanetary dust in-situ, in order to provide crucial information not achievable with remote sensing astronomical methods. Galactic interstellar dust constitutes the solid phase of matter from which stars and planetary systems form. Interplanetary dust, from comets and asteroids, represents remnant material from bodies at different stages of early solar system evolution. Thus, studies of interstellar and interplanetary dust with DuneXpress in Earth orbit will provide a comparison between the composition of the interstellar medium and primitive planetary objects. Hence DuneXpress will provide insights into the physical conditions during planetary system formation. This comparison of interstellar and interplanetary dust addresses directly themes of highest priority in astrophysics and solar system science, which are described in ESA’s Cosmic Vision. The discoveries of interstellar dust in the outer and inner solar system during the last decade suggest an innovative approach to the characterization of cosmic dust. DuneXpress establishes the next logical step beyond NASA’s Stardust mission, with four major advancements in cosmic dust research: (1) analysis of the elemental and isotopic composition of individual interstellar grains passing through the solar system, (2) determination of the size distribution of interstellar dust at 1 AU from 10^− 14 to 10^− 9 g, (3) characterization of the interstellar dust flow through the planetary system, (4) establish the interrelation of interplanetary dust with comets and asteroids. Additionally, in supporting the dust science objectives, DuneXpress will characterize dust charging in the solar wind and in the Earth’s magnetotail. The science payload consists of two dust telescopes of a total of 0.1 m² sensitive area, three dust cameras totaling 0.4 m² sensitive area, and a nano-dust detector. The dust telescopes measure high-resolution mass spectra of both positive and negative ions released upon impact of dust particles. The dust cameras employ different detection methods and are optimized for (1) large area impact detection and trajectory analysis of submicron sized and larger dust grains, (2) the determination of physical properties, such as flux, mass, speed, and electrical charge. A nano-dust detector searches for nanometer-sized dust particles in interplanetary space. A plasma monitor supports the dust charge measurements, thereby, providing additional information on the dust particles. About 1,000 grains are expected to be recorded by this payload every year, with 20% of these grains providing elemental composition. During the mission submicron to micron-sized interstellar grains are expected to be recorded in statistically significant numbers. DuneXpress will open a new window to dusty universe that will provide unprecedented information on cosmic dust and on the objects from which it is derived.     

Fluctuations of Solar Activity during the Declining Phase of the 11-Year Sunspot Cycle

The number of coronal mass ejections (CMEs) erupting from the Sun follows a trend similar to that of sunspot numbers during the rising and maximum phase of the solar cycle. In the declining phase, the CME number has large fluctuations, dissimilar to those of sunspot numbers. In several studies of solar – interplanetary and solar – terrestrial relationships, the sunspot numbers and the 2800-MHz flux (F10) are used as representative of solar activity. In the rising phase, this may be adequate, but in the declining phase, solar parameters such as CMEs may have a different behaviour. Cosmic-ray Forbush decreases may occur even when sunspot activity is low. Therefore, when studying the solar influence on the Earth, one has to consider that although geomagnetic conditions at solar maximum will be disturbed, conditions at solar minimum may not be necessarily quiet.     

A note on the total mass of comets in the solar system

The assumption that the very low albedo determined for Halley's comet is typical of all short period comets, taken together with the assumption that the average sizes of long and short period comets are approximately equal, leads to an increase in the total mass of comets in the solar system by almost two orders of magnitude. If gravitational ejection from the Uranus - Neptune zone during the later phases of planet formation is indeed responsible for the classical Oort cloud between 10⁴–10¹⁵ AU, then the mass of comets in this transplanetary region during cosmogonie times has to exceed the combined masses of Uranus and Neptune by over an order of magnitude. Furthermore, if the recent arguments for as many as 10¹⁴ comets in an inner Oort cloud between ~40– 10⁴AU are valid, then the total mass of comets in the solar system approaches 2% of a solar mass.     

Organics-glued dust aggregates in Halley's coma and some implications of the snow line inward motion for the formation of comets

In view of the solar nebula models, organics-glued dust aggregates (whose disintegration resulted in the two phenomena found in Halley's coma, the dust boundary and small-scale dust structures) originated due to coagulation of iceless dust particles somewhere within the snow line, and then were incorporated into Halley's nucleus as a consequence of the snow line inward motion. This implies that two types of comets exist: outer comets, formed entirely beyond the snow line, and inner comets, similar to Halley, which are bodies intermediate between outer comets and primitive asteroids. The presence of large iceless dust aggregates in nuclei of inner comets constrains the inward drift velocity of meter-sized dust bodies, which in turn implies that the radial transport of water in the solar nebula was predominantly outward. It is shown that in nuclei of inner comets: both the upper mass limit of iceless dust aggregates and the ice mantle thickness increase with decreasing formation heliocentric distance, while the cumulative mass distribution index decreases; the lower limit of the mass index is ∼0.8, and the upper limit of the ice mantle thickness is ∼10⁻³ cm (∼200 times the interstellar value); the lower limit of the latent heat of organics in organic mantles of submicron particles increases toward small heliocentric distances; the recondensation of organics combined with the growth of dust bodies leads to a fractionation of organics within iceless dust aggregates; last accreted sub-units of an aggregate are always glued by organics with the lowest value of the latent heat, which somewhat exceeds 60 kJ/mol. Based on in situ observations at Halley, the parameters characterizing iceless dust aggregates in that comet are calculated. Finally, feasible observational tests of the conclusions drawn are discussed.     

Core, Halo and Strahl Electrons in the Solar Wind

Electron velocity distribution functions (VDF) observed in the low speed solar wind flow are generally characterized by ‘core’ and ‘halo’ electrons. In the high speed solar wind, a third population of ‘strahl’ electrons is generally observed. New collisional models based on the solution of the Fokker-Planck equation can be used to determine the importance of the different electron populations as a function of the radial distance. Typical electron velocity distribution functions observed at 1 AU from the Sun are used as boundary conditions for the high speed solar wind and for the low speed solar wind. Taking into account the effects of external forces and Coulomb collisions with a background plasma, suprathermal tails are found to be present in the electron VDF at low altitudes in the corona when they exist at large radial distances. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

The12C/13C isotope ratio in comets,stars and interstellar matter

The¹²C/¹³C isotope ratio in the interstellar medium and in stellar atmospheres is discussed and compared to the value found in the solar system and especially in comets. The cometary value (100) tends to be slightly above the terrestrial value and is definitively higher than that for interstellar molecular clouds (about 30 to 50).This result implies that comets are not of interstellar origin; that the original isotopic abundances of the primitive solar nebula has been preserved in the cometary material; and that due to an enrichment of the interstellar medium in¹³C, the¹²C/¹³C isotope ratio has decreased by a factor of about 2.5 since the formation of the solar system (i.e., during the past 4.5×10⁹ years) — a result which is roughly in agreement with present theories of the chemical evolution of our Galaxy. The relatively high cometary carbon isotope ratio (as compared to the terrestrial value) indicates that some correction should be applied to the semi-empirical models describing the¹³C enrichment in the Galaxy.Paper dedicated to Professor Hannes Alfvén, on the occasion of his 70th birthday, 30 May, 1978.     

Evaluating Cometary Delivery of Organics to the Early Earth

An approximate calculation of the amount of organic material (OM) delivered to the Earth by comets during the first 700 million years of the planet's existence has been carried out. Approximation formulas based on lunar-crater data have been used for the flux of bodies colliding with the Earth. The calculations of impact velocities have been performed with allowance made for dragging and ablation of bodies in the atmosphere. Semianalytical models used in these calculations take into account the increase in the cross-sectional area of a disrupted meteoroid due to aerodynamic forces, as well as specific features of radiative heat transfer at large optical depths. Particular attention has been given to oblique trajectories that correspond to the perigee distances of cometary orbits close to the Earth's radius. Kilometer-sized comets, which arrived at the surface with low velocities, contributed largely to the mean OM flux under conditions of a dense early terrestrial atmosphere. For the atmosphere with a near-surface pressure of 10 bars, this flux comprises (1–40) × 10⁷ kg per year. As will be shown below, rare but highly probable events of atmospheric entry of large (10 km) comets along oblique trajectories may have produced high local concentrations of organic molecules.     

The cambridge cosmochemistry symposium

This article is a critical summary of the solar-system aspects of a meeting held in August 1972. The purpose of the meeting was to review work done sonce the 1967 Paris meeting on the Origin of the Elements.The principal topics discussed were element abundances; the structure and composition of comets, of the terrestrial and the outer planets, of the Moon, of exospheric dust, and of meteorites; planetary atmospheres; evidence for a protosolar magnetic field from remanent meteorite magnetism, abiotic synthesis of organic molecules; nucleosynthesis; solar cosmic rays; and meteorite ages.The principal results were these: There have been a number of significant changes in the estimated solar abundances—especially D, He, B, and Fe. A great deal of progress has been made in our understanding of the temperature and pressure conditions in the protosolar nebula during planetary formation, and of the condensation of solids in it. It is believed that the bulk chemistry of the terrestrial planets is now understood on the basis of equilibrium (slow) cooling of the nebula. Their atmospheres are consistent with this model, and that of Jupiter, with inhomogeneous accretion. The structure of Jupiter is also better understood. There is disagreement on the deep structure and composition of the Moon, though of course an enormous amount has been learned, especially about the surface layers. Not so much progress has been made in understanding comets.     

Isotopic abundance in the CN coma of comets: Ten years of measurements

Over the past 10 years the isotopic ratios of carbon (¹²C/¹³C) and nitrogen (¹⁴N/¹⁵N) have been determined for a dozen comets, bright enough to allow obtaining the required measurements from the ground. The ratios were derived from high-resolution spectra of the CN coma measured in the B²∑⁺−X²∑⁺ (0, 0) emission band around 387 nm. The observed comets belong to different dynamical classes, including dynamically new as well as long- and short-period comets from the Halley- and Jupiter-family. In some cases the comets could be observed at various heliocentric distances. All values determined for the carbon and nitrogen isotopic ratios were consistent within the error margin irrespective of the type of comet or the heliocentric distance at which it was observed. Our investigations resulted in average ratios of ¹²C/¹³C=91±21 and nitrogen ¹⁴N/¹⁵N=141±29. Whilst the value for the carbon isotopic ratio is in good agreement with the solar and terrestrial value of 89, the nitrogen isotopic ratio is very different from the telluric value of 272.