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Origins for the near-earth asteroidsBecause of their short dynamical lifetimes, the population of near-earth asteroids (NEAs) must be resupplied. Two sources have been hypothesized: main-belt asteroids and extinct comet nuclei. A new survey of physical properties for less than 5 kilometers diameter main-belt asteroids reveals that their spin rate and shape distributions are similar to those of NEAs, as is fully consistent with a main-belt origin for most NEAs. Physical data on comet nuclei are limited. If the existing sample is representative of the comet population, analysis of the asteroid and comet samples constrains the fraction of comet nuclei to between 0 and 40 percent of the total NEA population.
Document ID
19920070461
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
Authors
Binzel, Richard P.
(NASA Headquarters Washington, DC United States)
Xu, Shui
(MIT Cambridge, MA, United States)
Bus, Schelte J.
(NASA Headquarters Washington, DC United States)
Bowell, Edward
(Lowell Observatory Flagstaff, AZ, United States)
Date Acquired
August 15, 2013
Publication Date
August 7, 1992
Publication Information
Publication: Science
Volume: 257
Issue: 5071
ISSN: 0036-8075
Subject Category
Lunar And Planetary Exploration
Accession Number
92A53085
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: NSF AST-88-18855
CONTRACT_GRANT: NAGW-1470
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other

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