http://arxiv.org/abs/1911.08318
We report on initial results from 20 days’ worth of TESS spacecraft observations of comet 46P/Wirtanen. The long-duration, high-cadence measurements show a 2018 September 26 outburst that exhibited a two-phase, 0.5 mag brightening profile, and may be the best temporally characterized natural outburst ever recorded. Gas velocities from the outburst peaked at 800 m s$^{-1}$, while dust expanded at only 10s of m s$^{-1}$. Coadded images also revealed a previously unreported dust trail that extends beyond the 24$^\circ$ field of view.
T. Farnham, M. Kelley, M. Knight, et. al.
Wed, 20 Nov 19
57/73
Comments: 9 pages, 5 figures
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