Evolution of Dust and Water Ice in Cometary Comae by Radiative Torques

TL;DR

This study investigates how radiative torques influence the evolution of dust and ice in cometary comae, revealing mechanisms for grain disruption and water ice desorption that explain observed comet activity at large distances.

Contribution

It introduces the Radiative Torque Disruption (RATD) mechanism for dust fragmentation and demonstrates rotational desorption of water ice grains at large heliocentric distances.

Findings

Composite grains can be rapidly disrupted into small fragments by RATD.

Icy grains can be desorbed from large heliocentric distances beyond 3 AU.

Rotational disruption and desorption may trigger activity in distant comets.

Abstract

Comets provide unique information about the physical and chemical properties of the environment in which the Solar system was formed. Understanding how cometary dust and ice evolve under the effect of sunlight is essential for constraining nuclear structure and triggering mechanism of comet activity. In this paper, we first study rotational disruption of dust grains lifted by outgassing from comet nuclei by radiative torques (RATs). We find that composite grains could be rapidly disrupted into small fragments by the Radiative Torque Disruption (RATD) mechanism. We then study rotational desorption of ice grains by RATs and find that icy grains could be desorbed from large heliocentric distances, beyond the sublimation radius of water at $R_{\rm sub}(\H_{2}\O)\sim 3\AU$. We also calculate the production rate of water vapor versus the heliocentric distance of comets due to rotational desorption. Our results could explain the variation of dust properties and the presence of small grains frequently observed from cometary comae. Finally, we suggest that the activity of distant comets could be triggered by rotational disruption of grains and desorption of water ice grains at large heliocentric distances.