# Disaggregation of Small, Cohesive Rubble Pile Asteroids due to YORP

## TL;DR

This paper investigates how small cohesive forces affect the evolution and disaggregation of rubble pile asteroids under the YORP effect, predicting a size threshold for disaggregation into components.

## Contribution

It introduces a theory linking cohesion, size, and YORP to asteroid disaggregation, providing new insights into asteroid evolution and binary formation constraints.

## Key findings

- Rubble pile asteroids can disaggregate into components below a size threshold.
- Disaggregation leads to higher spin limits for constituent components.
- Implications for asteroid size distribution and meteoroid composition.

## Abstract

The implication of small amounts of cohesion within relatively small rubble pile asteroids is investigated with regard to their evolution under the persistent presence of the YORP effect. We find that below a characteristic size, which is a function of cohesive strength, density and other properties, rubble pile asteroids can enter a "disaggregation phase" in which they are subject to repeated fissions after which the formation of a stabilizing binary system is not possible. Once this threshold is passed rubble pile asteroids may be disaggregated into their constituent components within a finite time span. These constituent components will have their own spin limits -- albeit potentially at a much higher spin rate due to the greater strength of a monolithic body. The implications of this prediction are discussed and include modification of size distributions, prevalence of monolithic bodies among meteoroids and the lifetime of small rubble pile bodies in the solar system. The theory is then used to place constraints on the strength of binary asteroids characterized as a function of their type.