Component periods of non-principal-axis rotation and their manifestations in the lightcurves of asteroids and bare cometary nuclei

TL;DR

This paper explores how the component periods of non-principal axis rotators manifest in asteroid and cometary nuclei lightcurves, enhancing interpretation of observational data.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis of the relationships between different conventions of component periods and their signatures in simulated lightcurves.

Findings

Derived relationships between two conventions of component periods.

Interpreted periodicity signatures in simulated lightcurves.

Enhanced understanding of NPA rotation manifestations in lightcurves.

Abstract

Lightcurve observations of asteroids and bare cometary nuclei are the most widely used observational tool to derive the rotational parameters. Therefore, an in-depth understanding of how component periods of dynamically excited non-principal axis (NPA) rotators manifest in lightcurves is a crucial step in this process. We investigated this with the help of numerically generated lightcurves of NPA rotators with component periods known a priori. The component periods of NPA rotation were defined in terms of two widely used yet complementary conventions. We derive the relationships correlating the component rotation periods in the two conventions. These relationships were then used to interpret the periodicity signatures present in the simulated lightcurves and rationalize them in either convention.