Evidence of surface heterogeneity on active asteroid (3200) Phaethon

TL;DR

This study investigates the surface heterogeneity of asteroid (3200) Phaethon using thermal infrared observations and thermophysical modeling, revealing distinct hemispherical differences in surface properties that relate to its activity.

Contribution

The paper introduces a model explaining Phaethon's surface heterogeneity with different thermophysical properties across hemispheres, based on thermal inertia variations.

Findings

Northern hemisphere has coarse regolith or porous boulders.

Southern hemisphere has fine-grained regolith.

A boundary between latitudes -30° and +10° separates the two regions.

Abstract

Thermal infrared emission and thermophysical modeling techniques are powerful tools in deciphering the surface properties of asteroids. The near-Earth asteroid (3200) Phaethon is an active asteroid with a very small perihelion distance and is likely the source of the Geminid meteor shower. We estimate and interpret the thermal inertia of this extraordinary asteroid using observations that span ten distinct sightings. The variation in thermal inertia over these sightings is inconsistent with the expected temperature-dependent thermal inertia theorized from radiative heat transfer within the regolith. Thus, we test whether the variation in thermal inertia can be explained by modeling a regolith layer over bedrock and two spatially heterogeneous scenarios. We find that the model in which Phaethon's north and south hemispheres have distinctly different thermophysical properties can sufficiently explain the thermal-inertias determined herein. In particular, we find that a boundary located between latitudes -30 deg and +10 deg separates fine-grained southern latitudes from a northern hemisphere that is dominated by coarse-grained regolith and/or a high coverage of porous boulders. We discuss the implications related to Phaethon's activity and potential association with 2005 UD.