Comparison of the orbital properties of Jupiter Trojan asteroids and Trojan dust

TL;DR

This study compares the orbital characteristics of Jupiter Trojan asteroids and dust particles, revealing how solar radiation pressure and resonances influence dust distribution and orbital parameters.

Contribution

It provides a detailed comparison of the orbital properties of Trojan dust and asteroids, highlighting the effects of solar radiation and resonances on dust particle dynamics.

Findings

Trojan dust particles are affected by solar radiation pressure, altering their resonance behavior.

Some dust particles are trapped in Saturn's 1:1 resonance and other higher-order resonances.

The distribution of orbital elements differs between asteroids and dust, especially in longitude of pericenter.

Abstract

In a previous paper we simulated the orbital evolution of dust particles from the Jupiter Trojan asteroids ejected by the impacts of interplanetary particles, and evaluated their overall configuration in the form of dust arcs. Here we compare the orbital properties of these Trojan dust particles and the Trojan asteroids. Both Trojan asteroids and most of the dust particles are trapped in the Jupiter 1:1 resonance. However, for dust particles, this resonance is modified because of the presence of solar radiation pressure, which reduces the peak value of the semi-major axis distribution. We find also that some particles can be trapped in the Saturn 1:1 resonance and higher order resonances with Jupiter. The distributions of the eccentricity, the longitude of pericenter, and the inclination for Trojans and the dust are compared. For the Trojan asteroids, the peak in the longitude of pericenter distribution is about 60 degrees larger than the longitude of pericenter of Jupiter; in contrast, for Trojan dust this difference is smaller than 60 degrees, and it decreases with decreasing grain size. For the Trojan asteroids and most of the Trojan dust, the Tisserand parameter is distributed in the range of two to three.