The boulder population of asteroid 4 Vesta: Size-frequency distribution and survival time
Stefan E. Schr\"oder, Uri Carsenty, Ernst Hauber, Franziska Schulzeck,, Carol A. Raymond, Christopher T. Russell

TL;DR
This study analyzes the size-frequency distribution and survival time of boulders on asteroid Vesta, revealing that Weibull distribution better models their distribution than the traditionally assumed power law.
Contribution
It introduces the Weibull distribution as a more accurate model for boulder size-frequency distribution on small bodies, challenging the common power law assumption.
Findings
Maximum boulder lifetime is about 300 million years.
Weibull distribution fits Vesta boulder data better than power law.
Boulder distribution behavior varies with size range.
Abstract
Dawn's framing camera observed boulders on the surface of Vesta when the spacecraft was in its lowest orbit (LAMO). We identified, measured, and mapped boulders in LAMO images, which have a scale of 20 m per pixel. We estimate that our sample is virtually complete down to a boulder size of 4 pixels (80 m). The largest boulder is a 400 m-sized block on the Marcia crater floor. Relatively few boulders reside in a large area of relatively low albedo, surmised to be the carbon-rich ejecta of the Veneneia basin, either because boulders form less easily here or live shorter. By comparing the density of boulders around craters with a known age, we find that the maximum boulder lifetime is about 300 Ma. The boulder size-frequency distribution (SFD) is generally assumed to follow a power law. We fit power laws to the Vesta SFD by means of the maximum likelihood method, but they do not fit well.…
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