Publications

The impact of the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) spacecraft with Dimorphosãllows us to studyãsteroid collision physics, including momentum transfer, the ejecta properties,ãnd the visibility of such events in the Solar system. We report observations of the DART impact in the ultraviolet (UV), visible light,ãnd near -infrared (IR) wa velengths. The observations support the existence ofãt least two separate components of the ejecta:ã fastãndã slow component. The fast-ejecta component is composed ofã gaseous phase, movingãtãbout 1.6 km s -1 withã mass of ≲10 4 kg. The fast ejecta is detected in the UVãnd visible light, but not in the near-IR z-band observations. Fittingã simplified optical thickness model to these observationsãllows us to constrain some of the properties of the fast ejecta, including its scattering efficiencyãnd the opacity of the gas. The slow ejecta component is movingãt typical velocities of up toãbout 10 m s -1 . It is composed of micrometer-size particles, that haveã scattering efficiency,ãt the direction of the observer, of the order of 10 -3ãndã total mass of ∼10 6 kg. The larger particles in the slow ejecta, whose size is bound to be in the range between ∼1 mmãnd ∼1 m, likely haveã scattering efficiency larger than that of the pre-impact Didymos system.

The Ultraviolet Transient Astronomy Satellite (ULTRASAT) is scheduled to be launched to geostationary orbit in 2026. It will carry a telescope with an unprecedentedly large field of view (204 deg2) and NUV (230-290nm) sensitivity (22.5 mag, 5σ, at 900s). ULTRASAT will conduct the first wide-field survey of transient and variable NUV sources and will revolutionize our ability to study the hot transient universe: It will explore a new parameter space in energy and time-scale (months long light-curves with minutes cadence), with an extra-Galactic volume accessible for the discovery of transient sources that is >300 times larger than that of GALEX and comparable to that of LSST. ULTRASAT data will be transmitted to the ground in real-time, and transient alerts will be distributed to the community in 23.5 AB mag, over 10 times deeper than the GALEX map. Two key science goals of ULTRASAT are the study of mergers of binaries involving neutron stars, and supernovae: With a large fraction (>50%) of the sky instantaneously accessible, fast (minutes) slewing capability and a field-of-view that covers the error ellipses expected from GW detectors beyond 2025, ULTRASAT will rapidly detect the electromagnetic emission following BNS/NS-BH mergers identified by GW detectors, and will provide continuous NUV light-curves of the events; ULTRASAT will provide early (hour) detection and continuous high (minutes) cadence NUV light curves for hundreds of core-collapse supernovae, including for rarer supernova progenitor types.

Context. The rotation state of small asteroids is affected in the long term by perturbing torques of gravitational and radiative origin (the YORP effect). The former can be detected by a change in the spin-axis orientation in the inertial space; the latter manifests itself by a quadratic increase in the rotation phase. Aims. Direct observational evidence of the YORP effect is the primary goal of our work. This includes both the YORP detection for new objects and an improvement in the accuracy of previously known detections. Methods. We carried out photometric observations of five near-Earth asteroids: (1862) Apollo, (2100) Ra-Shalom, (85989) 1999 JD6, (138852) 2000 WN10, and (161989) Cacus. Then we applied the light-curve inversion method to all available data to determine the spin state and a convex shape model for each of the five studied asteroids. The YORP effect was modeled as a linear change of the rotation frequency υ ≡ dω/dt. In the case of (2100) Ra-Shalom, the analysis required that the spin-axis precession due to the solar gravitational torque also be included. Results. We obtained two new detections of the YORP effect: (i) υ = (2.9 ± 2.0) × 10-9 rad d-2 for (2100) Ra-Shalom, and (ii) υ = (5.5 ± 0.7) × 10-8 rad d-2 for (138852) 2000 WN10. The analysis of Ra-Shalom also reveals a precession of the spin axis with a precession constant α ~ 3000'' yr-1. This is the first such detection from Earth-bound photometric data. For the other two asteroids, we improved the accuracy of the previously reported YORP detection: (i) υ = (4.94 ± 0.09) × 10-8 rad d-2 for (1862) Apollo, and (ii) υ = (1.86 ± 0.09) × 10-8 rad d-2 for (161989) Cacus. With this value, Apollo has the most precisely determined YORP effect so far. Despite the recent report of a detected YORP effect for (85989) 1999 JD6, we show that the model without YORP cannot be rejected statistically. Therefore, the detection of the YORP effect for this asteroid requires future observations. In several of our targets, the currently available observations do not provide enough constraints on the shape model (even at large scales) to compute the theoretical YORP effect with sufficient precision. Nevertheless, the interpretation of the detected signal as the YORP effect is fairly plausible. The spin-axis precession constant of Ra-Shalom determined from observations matches the theoretically expected value. Conclusions. The total number of asteroids with a YORP detection has increased to 12. In all cases, the rotation frequency increases in time. The analysis of a rich photometric data set of irregularly shaped asteroids may require inclusion of spin-axis precession in future studies.

The Hera mission will arrive at the Didymos system to study the efficiency of momentum transfer and to further investigate the binary system in great detail after the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission impact. We took advantage of two online data bases of meteorites spectra and of recent Didymos spectra taken before and after the DART impact. We performed the first selection based on the comparison of the band centre values of the silicate absorption bands (localized at 1 and 2 μm) between Didymos and the meteorites. The second selection was made defining a four-dimensional space parameter whose dimensions were the band depth and the slope of the two bands, normalized to Didymos values. We introduced a distance measure to find the closest meteorites to Didymos in this space. Finally, we made the last selection based on other criteria, such as the presence of different spectra of the same meteorite, the presence of different spectra from different data bases, and the comparison with the literature. The result of this work is a list of six meteorites that are the most analogous to Didymos system. We also found out that Didymos is most probably mainly composed of L/LL ordinary chondrites, with a preference for the LL sub-type. From our list of meteorites, we were able to estimate the normalized abundance of olivine and pyroxene of Didymos. Finally, a match between Didymos and OC meteorites was also found in the Mid-InfraRed (MIR) range.

Asteroid collisions are one of the main processes responsible for the evolution of bodies in the main belt. Using observations of the Dimorphos impact by the DART spacecraft, we estimate how asteroid collisions in the main belt may look in the first hours after the impact. If the DART event is representative of asteroid collisions with a ∼1 m sized impactor, then the light curves of these collisions will rise on timescales of about ≳100 s and will remain bright for about 1 hr. Next, the light curve will decay on a few hours' timescale to an intermediate luminosity level in which it will remain for several weeks, before slowly returning to its baseline magnitude. This estimate suffers from several uncertainties due to, e.g., the diversity of asteroid composition, their material strength, and spread in collision velocities. We estimate that the rate of collisions in the main belt with energy similar to or larger than the DART impact is of the order of 7000 yr⁻¹ (±1 dex). The large range is due to the uncertainty in the abundance of ∼1 m sized asteroids. We estimate the magnitude distribution of such events in the main belt, and we show that ∼6% of these events may peak at magnitudes brighter than 21. The detection of these events requires a survey with ≲1 hr cadence and may contribute to our understanding of the asteroids’ size distribution, collisional physics, and dust production. With an adequate survey strategy, new survey telescopes may regularly detect asteroid collisions.

Binary asteroids probe thermal-radiation effects on the main-belt asteroids' evolution. We discuss the possibility of detecting binary minor planet systems by the astrometric wobble of the center-of-light around the center-of-mass. This method enables the exploration of the phase-space of binary asteroids, which is difficult to explore using common detection techniques. We describe a forward model that projects the center-of-light position with respect to the center-of-mass, as it is seen by the observer. We study the performance of this method using simulated Gaia-like data. We apply the astrometric method to a subset of the Gaia DR2 Solar System catalog and find no significant evidence of binary asteroids. This is likely because the Gaia DR2 removed astrometric outliers, which in our case may be due to astrophysical signals. Applying this method to binary asteroid (4337) Arecibo, for which Gaia DR3 reported a possible astrometric signal with a period of P = 32.85+/-0.38 hr, reveals a possible 2.2-sigma solution with a period of 16.26 hr (about half the reported period). We find a small, marginally significant, excess of astrometric noise in the known binary asteroid population from Pravec et al. relative to the entire asteroid population in the Gaia DR2 Solar System catalog. We also discuss some caveats like precession and asteroid rotation.

The Large Array Survey Telescope (LAST) is a wide-field visible-light telescope array designed to explore the variable and transient sky with a high cadence. LAST will be composed of 48, 28 cm f/2.2 telescopes (32 already installed) equipped with full-frame backside-illuminated cooled CMOS detectors. Each telescope provides a field of view (FoV) of 7.4 deg² with 1.″25 pix⁻¹, while the system FoV is 355 deg² in 2.9 Gpix. The total collecting area of LAST, with 48 telescopes, is equivalent to a 1.9 m telescope. The cost-effectiveness of the system (i.e., probed volume of space per unit time per unit cost) is about an order of magnitude higher than most existing and under-construction sky surveys. The telescopes are mounted on 12 separate mounts, each carrying four telescopes. This provides significant flexibility in operating the system. The first LAST system is under construction in the Israeli Negev Desert, with 32 telescopes already deployed. We present the system overview and performances based on the system commissioning data. The B _p 5σ limiting magnitude of a single 28 cm telescope is about 19.6 (21.0), in 20 s (20 × 20 s). Astrometric two-axes precision (rms) at the bright-end is about 60 (30) mas in 20 s (20 × 20 s), while absolute photometric calibration, relative to GAIA, provides ∼10 millimag accuracy. Relative photometric precision, in a single 20 s (320 s) image, at the bright-end measured over a timescale of about 60 minutes is about 3 (1) millimag. We discuss the system science goals, data pipelines, and the observatory control system in companion publications.

Measuring the size distribution of small (kilometre-scale) Kuiper belt objects (KBOs) can help constrain models of Solar system formation and planetary migration. Such small, distant bodies are hard to detect with current or planned telescopes, but can be identified as sub-second occultations of background stars. We present the analysis of data from the Weizmann Fast Astronomical Survey Telescope, consisting of fast photometry of ∼10⁶ star-hours at a frame rate of 10-25 Hz. Our pipeline utilizes a matched-filter approach with a large template bank, including red-noise treatment, and injection of simulated events for estimating the detection efficiency. The KBO radius at which our survey is 10 per cent (50 per cent) efficient is 1.1 (2.0) km. The data from 2020-2021 observing seasons were analysed and no occultations were identified. We discuss a sample of sub-second false-positive events, both occultation-like and flare-like, which are still not fully understood but could be instructive for future surveys looking for short-duration events. We use our null-detection result to set limits on the kilometre-scale KBO number density. Our individual radius bin limits are consistent with most previous works, with N(r > 1 km) ≲ 10⁶ deg^-2 (95 per cent confidence limit). Our integrated (all size) limits, assuming a power law normalized to large (≈45 km) KBOs give a power-law index q < 3.93 (95 per cent confidence limit). Finally, our results are in tension with a recently reported KBO detection from the ground, at the p = 4 × 10^-4 level.

The Large Array Survey Telescope (LAST) is designed to survey the variable and transient sky at high temporal cadence. The array is comprised of 48 F/2.2 telescopes of 27.9 cm aperture, coupled to full-frame backside-illuminated cooled CMOS detectors with 3.76 μm pixels, resulting in a pixel scale of 1.″25. A single telescope with a field of view of 7.4 deg² reaches a 5σ limiting magnitude of 19.6 in 20 s. LAST 48 telescopes are mounted on 12 independent mounts—a modular design which allows us to conduct optimized parallel surveys. Here we provide a detailed overview of the LAST survey strategy and its key scientific goals. These include the search for gravitational-wave (GW) electromagnetic counterparts with a system that can cover the uncertainty regions of the next-generation GW detectors in a single exposure, the study of planetary systems around white dwarfs, and the search for near-Earth objects. LAST is currently being commissioned, with full scientific operations expected in mid 2023. This paper is accompanied by two complementary publications in this issue, giving an overview of the system and of the dedicated data reduction pipeline.

In recent years, certain luminous extragalactic optical transients have been observed to last only a few days¹. Their short observed duration implies a different powering mechanism from the most common luminous extragalactic transients (supernovae), whose timescale is weeks². Some short-duration transients, most notably AT2018cow (ref. ³), show blue optical colours and bright radio and X-ray emission⁴. Several AT2018cow-like transients have shown hints of a long-lived embedded energy source⁵, such as X-ray variability^6,7, prolonged ultraviolet emission⁸, a tentative X-ray quasiperiodic oscillation^9,10 and large energies coupled to fast (but subrelativistic) radio-emitting ejecta^11,12. Here we report observations of minutes-duration optical flares in the aftermath of an AT2018cow-like transient, AT2022tsd (the ‘Tasmanian Devil’). The flares occur over a period of months, are highly energetic and are probably nonthermal, implying that they arise from a near-relativistic outflow or jet. Our observations confirm that, in some AT2018cow-like transients, the embedded energy source is a compact object, either a magnetar or an accreting black hole.

The Large Array Survey Telescope (LAST) is a wide-field telescope designed to explore the variable and transient sky with a high cadence and to be a test-bed for cost-effective telescope design. A LAST node is composed of 48 (32 already deployed), 28 cm f/2.2 telescopes. A single telescope has a 7.4 deg² field of view and reaches a 5σ limiting magnitude of 19.6 (21.0) in 20 (20 × 20) s (filter-less), while the entire system provides a 355 deg² field of view. The basic strategy of LAST is to obtain multiple 20 s consecutive exposures of each field (a visit). Each telescope carries a 61 Mpix camera, and the system produces, on average, about 2.2 Gbit s⁻¹. This high data rate is analyzed in near real-time at the observatory site, using limited computing resources (about 700 cores). Given this high data rate, we have developed a new, efficient data reduction and analysis pipeline. The LAST data pipeline includes two major parts: (i) Processing and calibration of single images, followed by a coaddition of the visit’s exposures. (ii) Building the reference images and performing image subtraction and transient detection. Here we describe in detail the first part of the pipeline. Among the products of this pipeline are photometrically and astrometrically calibrated single and coadded images, 32 bit mask images marking a wide variety of problems and states of each pixel, source catalogs built from individual and coadded images, Point-Spread Function photometry, merged source catalogs, proper motion and variability indicators, minor planets detection, calibrated light curves, and matching with external catalogs. The entire pipeline code is made public. Finally, we demonstrate the pipeline performance on real data taken by LAST.

Evidence is seen for young, fresh surfaces among Near-Earth and Main-Belt asteroids even though space-weathering timescales are shorter than the age of the surfaces. A number of mechanisms have been proposed to refresh asteroid surfaces on short timescales, such as planetary encounters, YORP spinup, thermal degradation, and collisions. Additionally, other factors such as grain size effects have been proposed to explain the existence of these “fresh-looking” spectra. To investigate the role each of these mechanisms may play, we collected a sample of visible and near-infrared spectra of 477 near-Earth and Mars Crosser asteroids with similar sizes and compositions — all with absolute magnitude H > 16 and within the S-complex and having olivine to pyroxene (ol/(ol+opx)) ratios >0.65. We taxonomically classify these objects in the Q (fresh) and S (weathered) classes. We find four trends in the Q/S ratio: (1) previous work demonstrated the Q/S ratio increases at smaller sizes down to H ≲16, but we find a sharp increase near H∼19 after which the ratio decreases monotonically. (2) in agreement with many previous studies, the Q/S ratio increases with decreasing perihelion distance, and we find it is non-zero for larger perihelia >1.2AU, (3) as a new finding our work reveals the Q/S ratio has a sharp, significant peak near ∼5° orbital inclination, and (4) we confirm previous findings that the Q/S ratio is higher for objects that have the possibility of encounter with Earth and Venus versus those that do not, however this finding cannot be distinguished from the perihelion trend. No single resurfacing mechanism can explain all of these trends, so multiple mechanisms are required. YORP spin-up scales with size, thermal degradation is dependent on perihelion, planetary encounters trend with inclination, perihelion and MOID, noting that asteroid–asteroid collisions are also dependent on inclination. It is likely that a combination of all four resurfacing mechanisms are needed to account for all observational trends.

Ejecta from Dimorphos following the DART mission impact significantly increased the brightness of the Didymos-Dimorphos system, allowing us to examine subsurface material. We report daily near-IR spectroscopic observations of the Didymos system using NASA’s IRTF that follow the evolution of the spectral signature of the ejecta cloud over 1 week, from 1 day before the impact. Overall, the spectral features remained fixed (S-type classification) while the ejecta dissipated, confirming that both Didymos and Dimorphos are constructed from the same silicate material. This novel result strongly supports binary asteroid formation models that include the breaking up of a single body due to rotational breakup of kilometer-wide bodies. At impact time +14 and +38 hr, the spectral slope decreased, but the following nights presented an increasing spectral slope that almost returned to the preimpact slope. However, the parameters of the 1 μm band remained fixed, and no “fresh”/Q-type-like spectrum was measured. We interpret this as follows. (1) The ejecta cloud is the main contributor (60%-70%) to the overall light during the ∼40 hr after impact. (2) Coarser debris (≥100 μm) dominated the ejecta cloud, decreasing the spectral slope (after radiation pressure removed the fine grains ≤10 hr after impact). (3) After approximately 1 week, the ejecta cloud dispersed enough to make the fine grains on Didymos’s surface the dominant part of the light, increasing the spectral slope to the preimpact level. (4) A negligible amount of nonweathered material was ejected from Dimorphos’s subsurface, suggesting that Dimorphos was accumulated from weathered material ejected from Didymos’s surface.

Context. The rotation state of small asteroids is affected by the Yarkovsky-O'Keefe-Radzievskii-Paddack (YORP) effect, which is a net torque caused by solar radiation directly reflected and thermally reemitted from the surface. Due to this effect, the rotation period slowly changes, which can be most easily measured in light curves because the shift in the rotation phase accumulates over time quadratically. Aims. By new photometric observations of selected near-Earth asteroids, we want to enlarge the sample of asteroids with a detected YORP effect. Methods. We collected archived light curves and carried out new photometric observations for asteroids (10115) 1992 SK, (1620) Geographos, and (1685) Toro. We applied the method of light curve inversion to fit observations with a convex shape model. The YORP effect was modeled as a linear change of the rotation frequency upsilon equivalent to d omega/dt and optimized together with other spin and shape parameters. Results. We detected the acceleration upsilon = (8.3 +/- 0.6) x 10(-8) rad d(-2) of the rotation for asteroid (10115) 1992 SK. This observed value agrees well with the theoretical value of YORP-induced spin-up computed for our shape and spin model. For (1685) Toro, we obtained upsilon = (3.3 +/- 0.3) x 10(-9) rad d(-2), which confirms an earlier tentative YORP detection. For (1620) Geographos, we confirmed the previously detected YORP acceleration and derived an updated value of upsilon with a smaller uncertainty. We also included the effect of solar precession into our inversion algorithm, and we show that there are hints of this effect in Geographos' data. Conclusions. The detected change of the spin rate of (10115) 1992 SK has increased the total number of asteroids with YORP detection to ten. In all ten cases, the d omega/dt value is positive, so the rotation of these asteroids is accelerated. It is unlikely to be just a statistical fluke, but it is probably a real feature that needs to be explained.

We describe results of a planetary defense exercise conducted during the close approach to Earth by the near-Earth asteroid (99942) Apophis during 2020 December–2021 March. The planetary defense community has been conducting observational campaigns since 2017 to test the operational readiness of the global planetary defense capabilities. These community-led global exercises were carried out with the support of NASA’s Planetary Defense Coordination Office and the International Asteroid Warning Network. The Apophis campaign is the third in our series of planetary defense exercises. The goal of this campaign was to recover, track, and characterize Apophis as a potential impactor to exercise the planetary defense system including observations, hypothetical risk assessment and risk prediction, and hazard communication. Based on the campaign results, we present lessons learned about our ability to observe and model a potential impactor. Data products derived from astrometric observations were available for inclusion in our risk assessment model almost immediately, allowing real-time updates to the impact probability calculation and possible impact locations. An early NEOWISE diameter measurement provided a significant improvement in the uncertainty on the range of hypothetical impact outcomes. The availability of different characterization methods such as photometry, spectroscopy, and radar provided robustness to our ability to assess the potential impact risk.

A relatively unexplored phase space of transients and stellar variability is that of second and sub-second timescales. We describe a new optical observatory operating in the Negev desert in Israel, with a 55 cm aperture, a field of view of 2fdg6 × 2fdg6 (≈7 deg2) equipped with a high frame rate, low read noise, CMOS camera. The system can observe at a frame rate of up to 90 HZ (full frame), while nominally observations are conducted at 10–25 Hz. The data, generated at a rate of over 6 Gbits s−1 at a frame rate of 25 Hz, are analyzed in real time. The observatory is fully robotic and capable of autonomously collecting data on a few thousand stars in each field each night. We present the system overview, performance metrics, science objectives, and some first results, e.g., the detection of a high rate of glints from geosynchronous satellites, reported in Nir et al. 2020.

The Weizmann Fast Astronomical Survey Telescope is a 55 cm optical survey telescope with a high-cadence (25 Hz) monitoring of the sky over a wide field of view (approximate to 7 deg(2)). The high frame rate allows detection of sub-second transients over multiple images. We present a sample of similar to 0.1-0.3 s duration flares detected in an untargeted survey for such transients. We show that most, if not all of them, are glints of sunlight reflected off geosynchronous and graveyard orbit satellites. The flares we detect have a typical magnitude of 9-11, which translates to similar to 14-16th magnitude if diluted by a 30 s exposure time. We estimate the rate of events brighter than similar to 11 mag to be of the order of 30-40 events per day per deg(2), for declinations between -20 degrees and +10 degrees, not including the declination corresponding to the geostationary belt directly above the equator, where the rate can be higher. We show that such glints are common in large area surveys (e.g. Zwicky Transient Facility and Legacy Survey of Space and Time), and that some of them have a point-like appearance, confounding searches for fast transients such as fast radio burst counterparts and gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). By observing in the direction of the Earth's shadow, we are able to put an upper limit on the rate of fast astrophysical transients of 0.052 deg(-2) day(-1) (95 per cent confidence limit) for events brighter than 11 mag. We also suggest that the single image, high declination flare observed in coincidence with the GN-z11 galaxy and assumed to be a GRB, is also consistent with such a satellite glint.

On 15 February 2013, the asteroid 367943 Duende (2012 DA14) experienced a near-Earth encounter at an altitude of 27,700 km or 4.2 Earth radii. We present here the results of an extensive, multi-observatory campaign designed to probe for spectral and/or rotational changes to Duende due to gravitational interactions with the Earth during the flyby. Our spectral data reveal no changes within systematic uncertainties. Post-flyby lightcurve photometry places strong constraints on the rotation state of Duende, showing that it is in non-principal axis rotation with fundamental periods of P-1 = 8.71 +/- 0.03 and P-2 = 23.7 +/- 0.2 h. Multiple lightcurve analysis techniques, coupled with theoretical considerations and delay-Doppler radar imaging, allow us to assign these periods to specific rotational axes of the body. In particular we suggest that Duende is now in a non-principal, short axis mode rotation state with a precessional period equal to P-1 and oscillation about the symmetry axis at a rate equal to P-2. Temporal and signal-to-noise limitations inherent to the pre-flyby photometric dataset make it difficult to definitively diagnose whether these periods represent a change imparted due to gravitational torques during the flyby. However, based on multiple analysis techniques and a number of plausibility arguments, we suggest that Duende experienced a rotational change during the planetary encounter with an increase in its precessional rotation period. Our preferred interpretation of the available data is that the precession rate increased from 8.4 h prior to the flyby to 8.7 h afterwards. A companion paper by Benson et al. (2019) provides a more detailed dynamical analysis of this event and compares the data to synthetic lightcurves computed from a simple shape model of Duende. The interpretation and results presented in these two works are consistent with one another. The ultimate outcome of this campaign suggests that the analytic tools we employed are sufficient to extract detailed information about solid-body rotation states given data of high enough quality and temporal sampling. As current and future discovery surveys find more near-Earth asteroids, the opportunities to monitor for physical changes during planetary encounters will increase.

Asteroid pairs are those found to share similar heliocentric orbits but not positions. The leading theory suggests that each had a single progenitor that split due to rotational-fission of a weak, rubble-pile structured body. By constructing shape models of asteroid pairs from multiple-apparition observations and using a lightcurve inversion technique, we mapped the gravitational and rotational accelerations on the surfaces of these asteroids. This allows us to construct a map of local slopes on the asteroids' surfaces. In order to test for frictional failure, we determine the maximum rotation rate at which an area larger than half the surface area of the secondary member (assumed to be the ejected component) has a slope value >40 degrees, the angle of friction of lunar regolith, where loose material will begin sliding. We use this criterion to constrain the failure stress operating on the body, just before disruption at the commonly observed spin barrier of 2.2 h. Our current sample includes shape models of eleven primary members of asteroid pairs, observed from the Wise Observatory in the last decade. In the studied parameter space we find that the shape models only reach the spin barrier when their bulk density is larger than the ~2 g cm ⁻ ³ measured for the rubble pile structured 25143 Itokawa, and better matches 433 Eros' value of 2.7 g cm ⁻ ³, suggesting that km-sized asteroid pairs are dense compared to sub-km bodies. Assuming ejection of secondary components that are larger than those observed (up to the maximal size allowing separation), can also increase the spin barrier of the asteroids, thus supporting the previously suggested scenario of continuous disruption of the secondary. In addition, cohesion levels of hundreds of Pascals are also required to prevent these shape models from disrupting at spin rates slower than the usual spin barrier.

We examined two decades of SpeX/NASA Infrared Telescope Facility observations from the Small Main-Belt Asteroid Spectroscopic Survey (SMASS) and the MIT-Hawaii Near-Earth Object Spectroscopic Survey (MITHNEOS) to investigate uncertainties and systematic errors in reflectance spectral slope measurements of asteroids. From 628 spectra of 11 solar analogs used for calibration of the asteroid spectra, we derived an uncertainty of mu m. Air mass contributes to -0.92% mu m(-1) per 0.1 unit air mass difference between the asteroid and the solar analog and therefore for an overall 2.8% mu m(-1) slope variability in SMASS and MITHNEOS designed to operate within 1.0-1.3 air mass. No additional observing conditions (including the parallactic angle, seeing, and humidity) were found to contribute systematically to slope change. We discuss implications for asteroid taxonomic classification works. Uncertainties provided in this study should be accounted for in future compositional investigation of small bodies to distinguish intrinsic heterogeneities from possible instrumental effects.

Though pairs of dynamically associated asteroids in the Main Belt have been identified and studied for over a decade, very few pair systems have been identified in the near-Earth asteroid population. We present data and analysis that supports the existence of two genetically related pairs in near-Earth space. The members of the individual systems, 2015 EE7 - 2015 FP124 and 2017 SN16 - 2018 RY7, are found to be of the same spectral taxonomic class, and both pairs are interpreted to have volatile-poor compositions. In conjunction with dynamical arguments, this suggests that these two systems formed via YORP spin-up and/or dissociation of a binary precursor. Backwards orbital integrations suggest a separation age of

The Mission Accessible Near-Earth Object Survey (MANOS) aims to observe and characterize small (mean absolute magnitude H similar to 25 mag) Near-Earth Objects (NEOs) that are accessible by spacecraft (mean Delta v similar to 5.7 km s(-1)) and that make close approaches with the Earth (mean Minimum Orbital Intersection Distance MOID similar to 0.03 au). We present here the first results of the MANOS visible spectroscopic survey. The spectra were obtained from August 2013 to March 2018 at Lowell Observatory's Discovery Channel 4.3 m telescope, and both Gemini North and South facilities. In total, 210 NEOs have been observed and taxonomically classified. Our taxonomic distribution shows significant variations with respect to surveys of larger objects. We suspect these to be due to a dependence of Main Belt source regions on object size. Compared to previous surveys of larger objects, we report a lower fraction of S+Q-complex asteroids of 43.8 +/- 4.6%. We associate this decrease with a lack of Phocaea family members at very small size. We also report higher fractions of X-complex and A-type asteroids of 23.8 +/- 3.3% and 3.8 +/- 1.3% respectively due to an increase of Hungaria family objects at small size. We find a strong correlation between the Q/S ratio and perihelion distance. We suggest this correlation is due to planetary close encounters with Venus playing a major role in turning asteroids from S to Q-type. This hypothesis is supported by a similar correlation between the Q/S ratio and Venus MOID.

We present near-infrared spectroscopy of the sporadically active asteroid (6478) Gault collected on the 3 m NASA/Infrared Telescope Facility observatory in late 2019 March/early April. Long-exposure imaging with the 0.5 m Near Earth Environment Monitoring T05 telescope and previously published data simultaneously monitored the asteroid activity, providing context for our measurements. We confirm that Gault is a silicate-rich (Q- or S-type) object likely linked to the (25) Phocaea collisional family. The asteroid exhibits substantial spectral variability over the 0.75-2.45 mu m wavelength range, from unusual blue (s' = -13.5 +/- 1.1% mu m(-1)) to typical red (s' = +9.1 +/- 1.2% mu m(-1)) spectral slope, that does not seem to correlate with activity. Spectral comparisons with samples of ordinary chondrite meteorites suggest that the blue color relates to the partial loss of the asteroid dust regolith, exposing a fresh, dust-free material at its surface. The existence of asteroids rotating close to rotational break-up limit and having similar spectral properties as Gault further supports this interpretation. Future spectroscopic observations of Gault, when the tails dissipate, will help further testing of our proposed hypothesis.

We studied a sample of 93 asteroid pairs, i.e., pairs of genetically related asteroids that are on highly similar heliocentric orbits. We estimated times elapsed since separation of pair members (i.e., pair age) that are between 7 x 10(3) yr and a few 10(6) yr. With photometric observations, we derived the rotation periods P-1 for all the primaries (i.e., the larger members of asteroid pairs) and a sample of secondaries (the smaller pair members). We derived the absolute magnitude differences of the studied asteroid pairs that provide their mass ratios q. For a part of the studied pairs, we refined their WISE geometric albedos and collected or estimated their taxonomic classifications. For 17 asteroid pairs, we also determined their pole positions. In two pairs where we obtained the spin poles for both pair components, we saw the same sense of rotation for both components and constrained the angles between their original spin vectors at the time of their separation. We found that the primaries of 13 asteroid pairs in our sample are actually binary or triple systems, i.e., they have one or two bound, orbiting secondaries (satellites). As a by-product, we found also 3 new young asteroid clusters (each of them consisting of three known asteroids on highly similar heliocentric orbits). We compared the obtained asteroid pair data with theoretical predictions and discussed their implications. We found that 86 of the 93 studied asteroid pairs follow the trend of primary rotation period vs mass ratio that was found by Pravec et al. (2010). Of the 7 outliers, 3 appear insignificant (may be due to our uncertain or incomplete knowledge of the three pairs), but 4 are high mass ratio pairs that were unpredicted by the theory of asteroid pair formation by rotational fission. We discuss a (remotely) possible way that they could be created by rotational fission of flattened parent bodies followed by reshaping of the formed components. The 13 asteroid pairs with binary primaries are particularly interesting systems that place important constraints on formation and evolution of asteroid pairs. We present two hypotheses for their formation: The asteroid pairs having both bound and unbound secondaries could be "failed asteroid clusters", or they could be formed by a cascade primary spin fission process. Further studies are needed to reveal which of these two hypotheses for formation of the paired binary systems is real.

Differentiated asteroids are rare in the main asteroid belt despite evidence for 100 distinct differentiated bodies in the meteorite record. We have sought to understand why so few main-belt asteroids differentiated and where those differentiated bodies or fragments reside. Using the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) to search for a needle in a haystack we identify spectral A-type asteroid candidates, olivine-dominated asteroids that may represent mantle material of differentiated bodies. We have performed a near-infrared spectral survey with SpeX on the NASA IRTF and FIRE on the Magellan Telescope.We report results from having doubled the number of known A-type asteroids. We deduce a new estimate for the overall abundance and distribution of this class of olivine-dominated asteroids. We find A-type asteroids account for less than 0.16% of all main-belt objects larger than 2 km and estimate there are a total of 600 A type asteroids above that size. They are found rather evenly distributed throughout the main belt, are even detected at the distance of the Cybele region, and have no statistically significant concentration in any asteroid family. We conclude the most likely implication is the few fragments of olivine-dominated material in the main belt did not form locally, but instead were implanted as collisional fragments of bodies that formed elsewhere.

Impacts due to near-Earth objects (NEOs) are responsible for causing some of the great mass extinctions on Earth. While nearly all NEOs of diameter > 1 km, capable of causing a global climatic disaster, have been discovered and have negligible chance of impacting in the near future, we are far from completion in our effort to detect and characterize smaller objects. In an effort to test our preparedness to respond to a potential NEO impact threat, we conducted a community-led global planetary defense exercise with support from the NASA Planetary Defense Coordination Office. The target of our exercise was 2012 TC4, the ~10 m diameter asteroid that made a close pass by the Earth on 2017 October 12 at a distance of about 50,000 km. The goal of the TC4 observing campaign was to recover, track, and characterize 2012 TC4 as a hypothetical impactor in order to exercise the global planetary defense system involving observations, modeling, prediction, and communication. We made three attempts with the Very Large Telescope (VLT) on 2017 July 27, 31 and on 2017 August 5 and recovered 2012 TC4 within its ephemeris uncertainty at 2.2 arcmin from the nominal prediction. At visual magnitude V = 27, the recovery of 2012 TC4 is the faintest NEA detection thus far. If an impact during the 2017 close approach had been possible based on the 2012 astrometric data, these recovery observations would have been sufficient to confirm or rule out the impact. The first automatic detection by a survey (Pan-STARRS1) was on September 25, which is the earliest that 2012 TC4 would have been discovered in survey mode, if it had not been discovered in 2012. We characterized 2012 TC4 using photometry, spectroscopy and radar techniques. Based on photometric observations, we determined a rotation period of 12.2 min with an amplitude of 0.9 magnitudes. An additional lower amplitude period was detected, indicating that 2012 TC4 was in a state of non-principal axis rotation. The combined visible and near-infrared spectrum puts it in the taxonomic X-class. Radar images at 1.875 m resolution placed only a few range pixels on the asteroid, reveal an angular, asymmetric, and elongated shape, and establish that 2012 TC4 is less than 20 m on its long axis. We estimate a circular polarization ratio of 0.57 + -0.08 that is relatively high among NEAs observed to date by radar. We also performed a probabilistic impact risk assessment exercise for hypothetical impactors based on the 2012 TC4 observing campaign. This exercise was performed as part of ongoing efforts to advance effective impact risk models and assessment processes for planetary defense. The 2012 TC4 close approach provided a valuable opportunity to test the application of these methods using realistically evolving observational data to define the modeling inputs. To this end, risk assessments were calculated at several epochs before and during the close approach, incorporating new information about 2012 TC4 as it became available. Two size ranges were assessed—one smaller size range (H = 26.7) similar to the actual 2012 TC4, and one larger size range (H = 21.9) to produce a greater-damage scenario for risk assessment. Across the epochs, we found that only irons caused significant damage for smaller size. For the larger size case, however, hydrous stones caused the greatest damage, anhydrous stones caused the least damage, and irons caused moderate damage. We note that the extent of damage depends on composition in different size regimes and, after astrometry, size is the most important physical property to determine for an incoming object.

Context. The tenuous nitrogen (N-2) atmosphere on Pluto undergoes strong seasonal effects due to high obliquity and orbital eccentricity, and has recently (July 2015) been observed by the New Horizons spacecraft.Aims. The main goals of this study are (i) to construct a well calibrated record of the seasonal evolution of surface pressure on Pluto and (ii) to constrain the structure of the lower atmosphere using a central flash observed in 2015.Methods. Eleven stellar occultations by Pluto observed between 2002 and 2016 are used to retrieve atmospheric profiles (density, pressure, temperature) between altitude levels of similar to 5 and similar to 380 km (i.e. pressures from similar to 10 mu bar to 10 nbar).Results. (i) Pressure has suffered a monotonic increase from 1988 to 2016, that is compared to a seasonal volatile transport model, from which tight constraints on a combination of albedo and emissivity of N-2 ice are derived. (ii) A central flash observed on 2015 June 29 is consistent with New Horizons REX profiles, provided that (a) large diurnal temperature variations (not expected by current models) occur over Sputnik Planitia; and/or (b) hazes with tangential optical depth of similar to 0.3 are present at 4-7 km altitude levels; and/or (c) the nominal REX density values are overestimated by an implausibly large factor of similar to 20%; and/or (d) higher terrains block part of the flash in the Charon facing hemisphere.

Advancing technology in near-infrared instrumentation and dedicated planetary telescope facilities have enabled nearly two decades of reconnoitering the spectral properties for near-Earth objects (NEOs). We report measured spectral properties for more than 1000 NEOs, representing >5% of the currently discovered population. Thermal flux detected below 2.5 mu m allows us to make albedo estimates for nearly 50 objects, including two comets. Additional spectral data are reported for more than 350 Mars-crossing asteroids. Most of these measurements were achieved through a collaboration between researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Hawaii, with full cooperation of the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF) on Mauna Kea. We call this project the MIT-Hawaii Near-Earth Object Spectroscopic Survey (MITHNEOS; myth-neos). While MITHNEOS has continuously released all spectral data for immediate use by the scientific community, our objectives for this paper are to: (1) detail the methods and limits of the survey data, (2) formally present a compilation of results including their taxonomic classification within a single internally consistent framework, (3) perform a preliminary analysis on the overall population characteristics with a concentration toward deducing key physical processes and identifying their source region for escaping the main belt. Augmenting our newly published measurements are the previously published results from the broad NEO community, including many results graciously shared by colleagues prior to formal publication. With this collective data set, we find the near-Earth population matches the diversity of the main-belt, with all main-belt taxonomic classes represented in our sample. Potentially hazardous asteroids (PHAs) as well as the subset of mission accessible asteroids (Delta VCorrelating meteorite interpretations with dynamical escape region models shows a preference for LL chondrites to arrive from the v6 resonance and H chondrites to have a preferential signature from the mid-belt region (3:1 resonance). L chondrites show some preference toward the outer belt, but not at a significant level. We define a Space Weathering Parameter as a continuous variable and find evidence for step-wise changes in space weathering properties across different planet crossing zones in the inner solar system. Overall we hypothesize the relative roles of planetary encounters, YORP spin-up, and thermal cycling across the inner solar system.

Context. The recent close approach of the near-Earth asteroid (3200) Phaethon offered a rare opportunity to obtain high-quality observational data of various types.Aims. We used the newly obtained optical light curves to improve the spin and shape model of Phaethon and to determine its surface physical properties derived by thermophysical modeling. We also used the available astrometric observations of Phaethon, including those obtained by the Arecibo radar and the Gaia spacecraft, to constrain the secular drift of the orbital semimajor axis. This constraint allowed us to estimate the bulk density by assuming that the drift is dominated by the Yarkovsky effect.Methods. We used the convex inversion model to derive the spin orientation and 3D shape model of Phaethon, and a detailed numerical approach for an accurate analysis of the Yarkovsky effect.Results. We obtained a unique solution for Phaethon's pole orientation at (318 degrees, -47 degrees) ecliptic longitude and latitude (both with an uncertainty of 5 degrees), and confirm the previously reported thermophysical properties (D = 5.1 +/- 0.2 km, Gamma = 600 +/- 200J m(-2) S-0.5K-1). Phaethon has a top-like shape with possible north-south asymmetry. The characteristic size of the regolith grains is 1-2 cm. The orbit analysis reveals a secular drift of the semimajor axis of -(6.9 +/- 1.9) x 10(-4) au Myr(-1) . With the derived volume-equivalent size of 5.1 km, the bulk density is 1.67 +/- 0.47 g cm(-3) . If the size is slightly larger similar to 5.7-5.8 km, as suggested by radar data, the bulk density would decrease to 1.48 +/- 0.42 g cm(-3) . We further investigated the suggestion that Phaethon may be in a cluster with asteroids (155140) 2005 UD and (225416) 1999 YC that was formed by rotational fission of a critically spinning parent body.Conclusions. Phaethon's bulk density is consistent with typical values for large (>100 km) C-complex asteroids and supports its association with asteroid (2) Pallas, as first suggested by dynamical modeling. These findings render a cometary origin unlikely for Phaethon.

Over 4.5 years, the Mission Accessible Near-Earth Object Survey assembled 228 near-Earth object (NEO) light curves. We report rotational light curves for 82 NEOs, constraints on amplitudes and periods for 21 NEOs, light curves with no detected variability within the image signal-to-noise and length of our observing block for 30 NEOs, and 10 tumblers. We uncovered two ultra-rapid rotators with periods below 20 s,-2016. MA with a potential rotational periodicity of 18.4 s, and 2017. QG(18) rotating in 11.9 s-and estimated the fraction of fast/ultra-rapid rotators undetected in our project plus the percentage of NEOs with a moderate/long periodicity undetectable during our typical observing blocks. We summarize the findings of a simple model of synthetic NEOs to infer the object's morphology distribution using the measured distribution of light curve amplitudes. This model suggests that a uniform distribution of axis ratio can reproduce the observed sample. This suggests that the quantity of spherical NEOs (e.g., Bennu) is almost equivalent to the quantity of highly elongated objects (e.g., Itokawa), a result that can be directly tested thanks to shape models from Doppler delay radar imaging analysis. Finally, we fully characterized two NEOs-2013 YS2 and 2014 FA(7)-as appropriate targets for a potential robotic/human mission due to their moderate spin periods and Delta v.

Here we explore a technique for constraining physical properties of near-Earth asteroids (NEAs) based on variability in thermal emission as a function of viewing aspect. We present case studies of the low albedo, near-Earth asteroids (285263) 1998 QE2 and (175706) 1996 FG3. The Near-Earth Asteroid Thermal Model (NEATM) is used to fit signatures of thermal emission in near-infrared (0.8 - 2.5  µm) spectral data. This analysis represents a systematic study of thermal variability in the near-IR as a function of phase angle. The observations of QE2 imply that carefully timed observations from multiple viewing geometries can be used to constrain physical properties like retrograde versus prograde pole orientation and thermal inertia. The FG3 results are more ambiguous with detected thermal variability possibly due to systematic issues with NEATM, an unexpected prograde rotation state, or a surface that is spectrally and thermally heterogenous. This study highlights the potential diagnostic importance of high phase angle thermal measurements on both sides of opposition. We find that the NEATM thermal beaming parameters derived from our near-IR data tend to be of order10’s of percent higher than parameters from ensemble analyses of longer wavelength data sets. However, a systematic comparison of NEATM applied to data in different wavelength regimes is needed to understand whether this offset is simply a reflection of small number statistics or an intrinsic limitation of NEATM when applied to near-IR data. With the small sample presented here, it remains unclear whether NEATM modeling at near-IR wavelengths can robustly determine physical properties like pole orientation and thermal inertia.

Seven of the nine known Mars Trojan asteroids belong to an orbital cluster 2 named after its largest member, (5261) Eureka. Eureka is probably the progenitor of the whole cluster, which formed at least 1Gyr ago(3). It has been suggested 3 that the thermal YORP (Yarkovsky-O'Keefe-Radzievskii-Paddack) effect spun up Eureka, resulting in fragments being ejected by the rotational-fission mechanism. Eureka's spectrum exhibits a broad and deep absorption band around 1 mu m, indicating an olivine-rich composition(4). Here we show evidence that the Trojan Eureka cluster progenitor could have originated as impact debris excavated from the Martian mantle. We present new near-infrared observations of two Trojans ((311999) 2007 NS2 and (385250) 2001 DH47) and find that both exhibit an olivine-rich reflectance spectrum similar to Eureka's. These measurements confirm that the progenitor of the cluster has an achondritic composition(4). Olivine-rich reflectance spectra are rare amongst asteroids' but are seen around the largest basins on Mars(6). They are also consistent with some Martian meteorites (for example, Chassigny(7)) and with the material comprising much of the Martian mantle(8,9). Using numerical simulations, we show that the Mars Trojans are more likely to be impact ejecta from Mars than captured olivine-rich asteroids transported from the main belt. This result directly links specific asteroids to debris from the forming planets.

At a mean diameter of ∼650 m, the near-Earth asteroid (455213) 2001 OE84 (OE84 for short) has a rapid rotation period of 0.486542 ± 0.000002 h, which is uncommon for asteroids larger than ∼200 m. We revisited OE84 14 years after it was first, and last, observed by Pravec et al. (2002) in order to measure again its spin rate and to search for changes. We have confirmed the rapid rotation and, by fitting the photometric data from 2001 and 2016 using the lightcurve inversion technique, we determined a retrograde sense of rotation, with the spin axis close to the ecliptic south pole; an oblate shape model of a/b=1.32±0.04 and b/c=1.8±0.2; and no change in spin rate between 2001 and 2016. Using these parameters we constrained the body's internal strength, and found that current estimations of asteroid cohesion (up to ∼80 Pa) are insufficient to maintain an intact rubble pile at the measured spin rate of OE84. Therefore, we argue that a monolithic asteroid, that can rotate at the rate of OE84 without shedding mass and without slowing down its spin rate, is the most plausible for OE84, and we give constraints on its age, since the time it was liberated from its parent body, between 2−10 million years.

The Mission Accessible Near-Earth Objects Survey aims to physically characterize sub-km near-Earth objects (NEOs). We report the first photometric results from the survey that began in 2013 August. Photometric observations were performed using 1-4 m class telescopes around the world. We present rotational periods and light curve amplitudes for 86 sub-km NEOs, though in some cases only lower limits are provided. Our main goal is to obtain light curves for small NEOs (typically, sub-km objects) and estimate their rotational periods, light curve amplitudes, and shapes. These properties are used for a statistical study to constrain overall properties of the NEO population. A weak correlation seems to indicate that smaller objects are more spherical than larger ones. We also report seven NEOs that are fully characterized (light curve and visible spectra) as the most suitable candidates for a future human or robotic mission. Viable mission targets are objects fully characterized, with Delta v(NHATS) 1 hr. Assuming a similar rate of object characterization as reported in this paper, approximately 1230 NEOs need to be characterized in order to find 100 viable mission targets.

The rubble pile spin barrier is an upper limit on the rotation rate of asteroids larger than ~200-300. m. Among thousands of asteroids with diameters larger than ~300. m, only a handful of asteroids are known to rotate faster than 2.0. h, all are in the sub-km range (≤0.6. km). Here we present photometric measurements suggesting that (60716) 2000 GD65, an S-complex, inner-main belt asteroid with a relatively large diameter of 2.3-0.7+0.6km, completes one rotation in 1.9529. ±. 0.0002. h. Its unique diameter and rotation period allow us to examine scenarios about asteroid internal structure and evolution: a rubble pile bound only by gravity; a rubble-pile with strong cohesion; a monolithic structure; an asteroid experiencing mass shedding; an asteroid experiencing YORP spin-up/down; and an asteroid with a unique octahedron shape results with a four-peak lightcurve and a 3.9. h period. We find that the most likely scenario includes a lunar-like cohesion that can prevent (60716) 2000 GD65 from disrupting without requiring a monolithic structure or a unique shape. Due to the uniqueness of (60716) 2000 GD65, we suggest that most asteroids typically have smaller cohesion than that of lunar regolith.

Cometary activity in main-belt asteroids probes the ice content of these objects and provides clues to the history of volatiles in the inner Solar system. We search the Palomar Transient Factory survey to derive upper limits on the population size of activemain-belt comets (MBCs). From data collected from 2009 March through 2012 July, we extracted~2million observations of ~220 thousand known main-belt objects (40 per cent of the known population, down to ~1-km diameter) and discovered 626 new objects in multinight linked detections. We formally quantify the 'extendedness' of a small-body observation, account for systematic variation in this metric (e.g. due to on-sky motion) and evaluate this method's robustness in identifying cometary activity using observations of 115 comets, including two known candidate MBCs and six newly discovered non-MBCs (two of which were originally designated as asteroids by other surveys). We demonstrate a 66 per cent detection efficiency with respect to the extendedness distribution of the 115 sampled comets, and a 100 per cent detection efficiency with respect to extendedness levels greater than or equal to those we observed in the known candidateMBCs P/2010 R2 (La Sagra) and P/2006VW₁₃₉.Using a log-constant prior, we infer 95 per cent confidence upper limits of 33 and 22 activeMBCs (per million main-belt asteroids down to ~1-km diameter), for detection efficiencies of 66 and 100 per cent, respectively. In a follow-up to this morphological search, we will perform a photometric (disc-integrated brightening) search for MBCs.

Only a handful of supernovae (SNe) have been studied in multiwavelengths from the radio to X-rays, starting a few days after the explosion. The early detection and classification of the nearby Type IIb SN 2011dh/PTF 11eon in M51 provides a unique opportunity to conduct such observations. We present detailed data obtained at one of the youngest phase ever of a core-collapse SN (days 3-12 after the explosion) in the radio, millimetre and X-rays; when combined with optical data, this allows us to explore the early evolution of the SN blast wave and its surroundings. Our analysis shows that the expanding SN shock wave does not exhibit equipartition (ε_e/ε_B ~ 1000), and is expanding into circumstellar material that is consistent with a density profile falling like R-². Within modelling uncertainties we find an average velocity of the fast parts of the ejecta of 15 000 ± 1800 km s^-1, contrary to previous analysis. This velocity places SN 2011dh in an intermediate blast wave regime between the previously defined compact and extended SN Type IIb subtypes. Our results highlight the importance of early (~1 d) high-frequency observations of future events. Moreover, we show the importance of combined radio/X-ray observations for determining the microphysics ratio ε_e/ε_B.

The Palomar Transient Factory (PTF) is a synoptic survey designed to explore the transient and variable sky in a wide variety of cadences. We use PTF observations of fields that were observed multiple times (≳10) per night, for several nights, to find asteroids, construct their light curves and measure their rotation periods. Here we describe the pipeline we use to achieve these goals and present the results from the first four (overlapping) PTF fields analysed as part of this programme. These fields, which cover an area of 21deg ², were observed on four nights with a cadence of ∼20min. Our pipeline was able to detect 624 asteroids, of which 145 (≈20 per cent) were previously unknown. We present high-quality rotation periods for 88 main-belt asteroids and possible period or lower limit on the period for an additional 85 asteroids. For the remaining 451 asteroids, we present lower limits on their photometric amplitudes. Three of the asteroids have light curves that are characteristic of binary asteroids. We estimate that implementing our search for all existing high-cadence PTF data will provide rotation periods for about 10000 asteroids mainly in the magnitude range ≈14 to ≈20.

We present photometry and spectroscopy of the peculiar Type II supernova (SN) SN 2010jp, also named PTF10aaxi. The light curve exhibits a linear decline with a relatively low peak absolute magnitude of only -15.9 (unfiltered), and a low radioactive decay luminosity at late times, which suggests a low synthesized nickel mass of M ( ⁵⁶ Ni) ≲ 0.003 M _⊙. Spectra of SN 2010jp display an unprecedented triple-peaked Hα line profile, showing (1) a narrow (full width at half-maximum >rsim800kms ^-1) central component that suggests shock interaction with dense circumstellar material (CSM); (2) high-velocity blue and red emission features centred at -12600 and +15400kms ^-1, respectively; and (3) very broad wings extending from -22000 to +25000kms ^-1. These features persist over multiple epochs during the ~100 d after explosion. We propose that this line profile indicates a bipolar jet-driven explosion, with the central component produced by normal SN ejecta and CSM interaction at mid and low latitudes, while the high-velocity bumps and broad-line wings arise in a non-relativistic bipolar jet. Two variations of the jet interpretation seem plausible: (1) a fast jet mixes ⁵⁶Ni to high velocities in polar zones of the H-rich envelope; or (2) the reverse shock in the jet produces blue and red bumps in Balmer lines when a jet interacts with dense CSM. Jet-driven Type II SNe are predicted for collapsars resulting from a wide range of initial masses above 25M _⊙, especially at subsolar metallicity. This seems consistent with the SN host environment, which is either an extremely low-luminosity dwarf galaxy or the very remote parts of an interacting pair of star-forming galaxies. It also seems consistent with the apparently low ⁵⁶Ni mass that may accompany black hole formation. We speculate that the jet survives to produce observable signatures because the star's H envelope was very low mass, having been mostly stripped away by the previous eruptive mass-loss indicated by the Type IIn features in the spectrum.

Context. In the past decade, more than one hundred asteroid models were derived using the lightcurve inversion method. Measured by the number of derived models, lightcurve inversion has become the leading method for asteroid shape determination. Aims. Tens of thousands of sparse-in-time lightcurves from astrometric projects are publicly available. We investigate these data and use them in the lightcurve inversion method to derive new asteroid models. By having a greater number of models with known physical properties, we can gain a better insight into the nature of individual objects and into the whole asteroid population. Methods. We use sparse photometry from selected observatories from the AstDyS database (Asteroids - Dynamic Site), either alone or in combination with dense lightcurves, to determine new asteroid models by the lightcurve inversion method. We investigate various correlations between several asteroid parameters and characteristics such as the rotational state and diameter or family membership. We focus on the distribution of ecliptic latitudes of pole directions. We create a synthetic uniform distribution of latitudes, compute the method bias, and compare the results with the distribution of known models. We also construct a model for the long-term evolution of spins. Results. We present 80 new asteroid models derived from combined data sets where sparse photometry is taken from the AstDyS database and dense lightcurves are from the Uppsala Asteroid Photometric Catalogue (UAPC) and from several individual observers. For 18 asteroids, we present updated shape solutions based on new photometric data. For another 30 asteroids we present their partial models, i.e., an accurate period value and an estimate of the ecliptic latitude of the pole. The addition of new models increases the total number of models derived by the lightcurve inversion method to ∼200. We also present a simple statistical analysis of physical properties of asteroids where we look for possible correlations between various physical parameters with an emphasis on the spin vector. We present the observed and de-biased distributions of ecliptic latitudes with respect to different size ranges of asteroids as well as a simple theoretical model of the latitude distribution and then compare its predictions with the observed distributions. From this analysis we find that the latitude distribution of small asteroids (D < 30 km) is clustered towards ecliptic poles and can be explained by the YORP thermal effect while the latitude distribution of larger asteroids (D > 60 km) exhibits an evident excess of prograde rotators, probably of primordial origin.

Main belt asteroids (6070) Rheinland and (54827) 2001 NQ8 belong to a small population of couples of bodies that reside in very similar heliocentric orbits. Vokrouhlick & Nesvorn promoted the term "asteroid pairs," pointing out their common origin within the past tens to hundreds ofkyr. Previous attempts to reconstruct the initial configuration of Rheinland and 2001 NQ8 at the time of their separation have led to the prediction that Rheinland's rotation should be retrograde. Here, we report extensive photometric observations of this asteroid and use the light curve inversion technique to directly determine its rotation state and shape. We confirm the retrograde sense of rotation of Rheinland, with obliquity value constrained to be ≥140°. The ecliptic longitude of the pole position is not well constrained as yet. The asymmetric behavior of Rheinland's light curve reflects a sharp, near-planar edge in our convex shape representation of this asteroid. Our calibrated observations in the red filter also allow us to determine H_R = 13.68 0.05 and G = 0.31 0.05 values of the H-G system. With the characteristic color index V - R = 0.49 0.05 for S-type asteroids, we thus obtain H = 14.17 0.07 for the absolute magnitude of (6070) Rheinland. This is a significantly larger value than previously obtained from analysis of astrometric survey observations. We next use the obliquity constraint for Rheinland to eliminate some degree of uncertainty in the past propagation of its orbit. This is because the sign of the past secular change of its semimajor axis due to the Yarkovsky effect is now constrained. The determination of the rotation state of the secondary component, asteroid (54827) 2001 NQ8, is the key element in further constraining the age of the pair and its formation process.

On 2011 May 31 UT a supernova (SN) exploded in the nearby galaxy M51 (the Whirlpool Galaxy). We discovered this event using small telescopes equipped with CCD cameras and also detected it with the Palomar Transient Factory survey, rapidly confirming it to be a Type II SN. Here, we present multi-color ultraviolet through infrared photometry which is used to calculate the bolometric luminosity and a series of spectra. Our early-time observations indicate that SN 2011dh resulted from the explosion of a relatively compact progenitor star. Rapid shock-breakout cooling leads to relatively low temperatures in early-time spectra, compared to explosions of red supergiant stars, as well as a rapid early light curve decline. Optical spectra of SN 2011dh are dominated by H lines out to day 10 after explosion, after which He I lines develop. This SN is likely a member of the cIIb (compact IIb) class, with progenitor radius larger than that of SN 2008ax and smaller than the eIIb (extended IIb) SN 1993J progenitor. Our data imply that the object identified in pre-explosion Hubble Space Telescope images at the SN location is possibly a companion to the progenitor or a blended source, and not the progenitor star itself, as its radius (∼10¹³cm) would be highly inconsistent with constraints from our post-explosion spectra.

We have identified a luminous star at the position of supernova (SN) 2011dh/PTF11eon, in pre-SN archival, multi-band images of the nearby, nearly face-on galaxy Messier 51 (M51) obtained by the Hubble Space Telescope with the Advanced Camera for Surveys. This identification has been confirmed, to the highest available astrometric precision, using a Keck-II adaptive-optics image. The available early-time spectra and photometry indicate that the SN is a stripped-envelope, core-collapse Type IIb, with a more compact progenitor (radius 10¹¹cm) than was the case for the well-studied SN IIb 1993J. We infer that the extinction to SN 2011dh and its progenitor arises from a low Galactic foreground contribution, and that the SN environment is of roughly solar metallicity. The detected object has absolute magnitude M⁰ _V -7.7 and effective temperature 6000K. The star's radius, 10 ¹³cm, is more extended than what has been inferred for the SN progenitor. We speculate that the detected star is either an unrelated star very near the position of the actual progenitor, or, more likely, the progenitor's companion in a mass-transfer binary system. The position of the detected star in a Hertzsprung-Russell diagram is consistent with an initial mass of 17-19 M_⊙. The light of this star could easily conceal, even in the ultraviolet, the presence of a stripped, compact, very hot (10⁵K), nitrogen-rich Wolf-Rayet star progenitor.