Dynamics and origin of asteroid families.

• Grant number: 06/56461-2
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Young Researchers
• Effective date (Start): August 01, 2006
• Effective date (End): January 31, 2007
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Astronomy - Positional Astronomy and Celestial Mechanics
• Principal Investigator: Valerio Carruba
• Grantee: Valerio Carruba
• Host Institution: Instituto de Geociências e Ciências Exatas (IGCE). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Rio Claro. Rio Claro , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 06/50005-5 - Dynamics and origin of asteroid families, AP.JP

Abstract

Among the largest asteroids in the main belt, asteroid 4 Vesta is unique in showing a basaltic crust. It is also the biggest member of the Vesta family, which is supposed to originate from a large cratering event about 1 Gyr ago (Marzari et al. 1996, Carruba et al. 2005). Most of the members of the Vesta family for which a spectral classification is available show a V-type spectra. Due to their characteristic infrared spectrum, V-type asteroids are easily distinguished. Before the discovery of 1459 Magnya (Lazzaro et al. 2000) and of several V-type NEA (Xu 1995), ali the known V-type asteroids were members of the Vesta family. Recently two V-type asteroids, 809 Lundia and 956 Elisa, (Florczak et al. 2002) have been discovered well outside the limits of the family, near the Flora family. We currently know 22 V-type asteroids outside the family, in the inner asteroid belt (see Table 2 in Carruba et al. 2005). In Carruba et al. 2005 we investigated the possibility that these objects are former family members that migrated to their current positions via the interplay of Yarkovsky effect and nonlinear secular resonances. (AU)