Giovanni Bacon Akash Joseph Phillip Mann lll Brendan Powers Chloe Nelson Kiara Richardson
Infrared satellite detectors, such as IRAS (Infrared Astronomical Satellite) and WISE (Wide Field Infrared Survey Explorer), provide observational evidence of catastrophic asteroid disruptions in the ..
Infrared satellite detectors, such as IRAS (Infrared Astronomical Satellite) and WISE (Wide Field Infrared Survey Explorer), provide observational evidence of catastrophic asteroid disruptions in the form of zodiacal cloud dust bands. With observations of these bands, the asteroid parents and their families (fragments of disruptions) are studied to better understand the zodiacal cloud prior to disruption, as well as how asteroids contribute to the debris disk of the solar system's zodiacal cloud. Before creating models that can be compared to satellite data, the dynamical evolutions of small particles resulting from different disruptions of different ages as they evolve into the inner solar system are tracked. The dynamical evolution code, written in IDL, simulates the orbital elements of small particles during disruption. It takes into consideration the gravitational and radiative forces affecting small particle orbits for specific families within their unique epochs of disruptions. Through plots of temporal variations of numerous orbital elements of the resulting disruptions, this team has begun comparing the dynamical evolution of small particles from different asteroidal disruptions, as they reach Near-Earth Space. Understanding the particles in this region is important for many reasons, including determining potential threats for spacecraft in future missions.