🚀 go-pugleaf

In msg. <93021.134039K3032E0@ALIJKU11.BITNET> K3032E0@ALIJKU11.BITNET writes:

> Has anyone an idea to which class "Toutatis" belongs? Is it a S-type-
> asteroid like "Gaspra"? Are the two bodies which form "TWOtatis" of the
> same spectral type?
> As earth-crossers are probable parent-bodies for meteorites, it would be
> interesting to know which type of meteorite may come from "Toutatis" (or
> similar objects).
>
>  Herbert

  Dave Tholen's observations of 4179 Toutatis prior to its close approach
showed a typical S-type spectrum. Many more observations have now been made
which confirm this and map out spectral features in more detail (like the
2 micrometer pyroxene absorption band). Look for details to be published in
an up-coming Icarus or JGR-Planets. These results come from spectrophotometry,
so there is no "disk"-resovled information here. Time-resolved spectra could
yield some information on the individual components, but we would have to
be sure we knew when the components were eclipsed. I don't think we know
Toutatis's rotation state that well yet...

  Hasegawa et al. (Publ. Astron. Soc. Japan 44, 45-54 1992) calculated the
radiant(s) of meteors associated with Earth-approaching asteroids, Toutatis
included. Look for "Toutatids" on Sept. 23 (RA 21 57.2 Dec -11 30) and on
Dec. 13 (RA 19 44.4 Dec. -22 18). Don't expect big showers!

  --Dan

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Daniel D. Durda
Dept. of Astronomy, Univ. of Florida
Gainesville, FL 32611
durda@astro.ufl.edu
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