Exploring the Effects of Impacts onto Phaethon and Other Near Earth Asteroids

双子座流星雨是罕见的，因为它的母体3200 Phaethon是一颗小行星，而不是彗星。大多数流星雨是由彗星通过太阳加热和蒸发而喷出的粒子产生的。在法厄同的例子中，其机制就不那么明显了。该团队先前解释了Bennu 101955的质量损失是由于彗星粒子的微流星体撞击造成的。该团队现在将使用NASA的Meteoriod工程模型（MEM）为Phaethon建模这个想法。他们的假设是，双子座流星雨是通过微陨石撞击形成的，导致法厄同留下了一条粒子轨迹，就像彗星一样。该团队还将为靠近太阳的弱束缚原始天体的质量损失和演化建模。该小组还将参加SwRI的夏季科学计划（SSP），并进行为期两天的计算会议的高中学生在该计划中，该小组将使用美国宇航局的流星体工程模型，以模拟微流星体的影响，在一个薄弱的原始表面被认为是代表3200法厄同在一个地区，在0.14 Au从太阳。在MEM之前的工作中，该团队发现毫米大小的流星体以40公里/秒的速度频繁撞击Bennu，足以解释所有粒子喷射事件的限制。利用Bennu的研究来指导他们的工作，该团队将（i）使用MEM模型来确定每次近日点通过时从Phaethon喷出的碎片的质量/方向，（ii）使用动力学模型来确定Phaethon碎片是否可以在过去1000年内重现双子座流星雨，以及（iii）使用动力学模型来探索Phaethon的起源，该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The Geminid Meteor Shower is rare in that its parent body, 3200 Phaethon, is an asteroid, not a comet. Most meteor showers are generated by particles expelled from comets by solar heating and evaporation. In Phaethon’s case, the mechanism is less obvious. The team previously explained mass loss at 101955 Bennu as arising due to micrometeoroid impacts from comet particles. The team will now model this idea for Phaethon using NASA’s Meteoriod Engineering Model (MEM). Their hypothesis is that the Geminids are formed through micrometeorite impacts, causing Phaethon to leave a trail of particles, much like a comet. The team will also model mass loss and evolution for weakly-bound primitive bodies that pass close to the Sun. The team will also participate in SwRI’s Summer Science Program (SSP) and conduct a two-day computational session for high-school students in the program.The team will use NASA’s Meteoroid Engineering Model to model micrometeoroid impact on a weak primitive surface as is thought to represent 3200 Phaethon in a region at 0.14 AU from the Sun. In prior work with MEM, the team found mm-sized meteoroids strike Bennu frequently enough at 40 km/s to explain all particle ejection event constraints. Using the Bennu study to guide their work, the team will (i) use the MEM model to determine the mass/direction of ejected debris from Phaethon per perihelion passage, (ii) use dynamical models to determine whether Phaethon debris can reproduce the Geminids over the last ~1000 years, and (iii) use dynamical models to explore Phaethon’s origin, which they argue is probably not from the Pallas asteroid family.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.