Asteroid 1 Ceres: evidence for water of hydration

An absorption feature centred near 3.0 µm has been discovered in the infrared spectrum of asteroid 1 Ceres. This spectrum has been compared with laboratory spectra of meteorites and shows great similarity to the spectra of type II carbonaceous chondrites. By analogy this suggests the presence of abo...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 1978-01, Vol.182 (1), p.17P-21P
Main Author: Lebofsky, L. A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Citations: Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:An absorption feature centred near 3.0 µm has been discovered in the infrared spectrum of asteroid 1 Ceres. This spectrum has been compared with laboratory spectra of meteorites and shows great similarity to the spectra of type II carbonaceous chondrites. By analogy this suggests the presence of about 10–15 per cent water in the form of water of hydration on the surface of Ceres. This is the first evidence of water in the surface material of an asteroid.
ISSN:0035-8711
1365-2966
DOI:10.1093/mnras/182.1.17P