Phase integral of asteroids

TL;DR

This paper calculates the phase integral values for asteroids using numerical methods and phase function relations, providing a basis for determining their Bond albedo and comparing asteroid and satellite properties.

Contribution

It introduces a method to determine asteroid phase integrals using the HG and HG1G2 functions, with results supporting the use of HG1G2 for accurate estimations.

Findings

Phase integrals range from 0.34 to 0.54 with an average of 0.44.

G1G2 parameters yield estimates in good agreement with observations.

Asteroids have systematically lower phase integral values than planetary satellites.

Abstract

The values of the phase integral q were determined for asteroids using (i) a numerical integration of the brightness phase functions over a wide phase-angle range and (ii) the relations between q and the G parameter of the HG-function and q and the G1, G2 parameters of the HG1G2-function. The phase-integral values for asteroids of different albedo range from 0.34 to 0.54 with an average value of 0.44. These values can be used for the determination of the Bond albedo of asteroids. Estimates for the phase-integral values using the G1 and G2 parameters are in very good agreement with the available observational data. We recommend using the HG1G2-function for the determination of the phase integral. Comparison of the phase integrals of asteroids and planetary satellites shows that asteroids have systematically lower values of q.