Refined physical parameters for Chariklo's body and rings from stellar occultations observed between 2013 and 2020

TL;DR

This study refines the physical parameters of Chariklo and its rings through analysis of stellar occultations from 2013 to 2020, providing more accurate shape, ring structure, and astrometric data.

Contribution

It offers the most precise measurements of Chariklo's shape and rings, including structure, orientation, and size, based on extensive occultation data and Gaia astrometry.

Findings

Chariklo's shape is an ellipsoid with semi-axes 143.8, 135.2, 99.1 km.

Ring C1R has a width between 4.8 and 9.1 km, with a mean of 6.5 km.

Ring eccentricity is less than 0.022, with width variations suggesting eccentricity over 0.005.

Abstract

The Centaur (10199) Chariklo has the first rings system discovered around a small object. It was first observed using stellar occultation in 2013. Stellar occultations allow the determination of sizes and shapes with kilometre accuracy and obtain characteristics of the occulting object and its vicinity. Using stellar occultations observed between 2017 and 2020, we aim at constraining Chariklo's and its rings physical parameters. We also determine the rings' structure, and obtain precise astrometrical positions of Chariklo. We predicted and organised several observational campaigns of stellar occultations by Chariklo. Occultation light curves were measured from the data sets, from which ingress and egress times, and rings' width and opacity were obtained. These measurements, combined with results from previous works, allow us to obtain significant constraints on Chariklo's shape and rings' structure. We characterise Chariklo's ring system (C1R and C2R), and obtain radii and pole orientations that are consistent with, but more accurate than, results from previous occultations. We confirmed the detection of W-shaped structures within C1R and an evident variation of radial width. The observed width ranges between 4.8 and 9.1 km with a mean value of 6.5 km. One dual observation (visible and red) does not reveal any differences in the C1R opacity profiles, indicating ring particle's size larger than a few microns. The C1R ring eccentricity is found to be smaller than 0.022 (3-sigma), and its width variations may indicate an eccentricity higher than 0.005. We fit a tri-axial shape to Chariklo's detections over eleven occultations and determine that Chariklo is consistent with an ellipsoid with semi-axes of 143.8, 135.2 and 99.1 km. Ultimately, we provided seven astrometric positions at a milliarcseconds accuracy level, based on Gaia EDR3, and use it to improve Chariklo's ephemeris.