MUSE observations of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko: A reference for future comet observations with MUSE

Abstract

Observations of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko were performed with MUSE at large heliocentric distances post-perihelion, between March 3 and 7, 2016. Those observations were part of a simultaneous ground-based campaign aimed at providing large-scale information about comet 67P that complement the ESA/Rosetta mission. We obtained a total of 38 datacubes over 5 nights. We take advantage of the integral field unit (IFU) nature of the instrument to study simultaneously the spectrum of 67P's dust and its spatial distribution in the coma. We also look for evidence of gas emission in the coma. We produce a high quality spectrum of the dust coma over the optical range that could be used as a reference for future comet observations with the instrument. The slope of the dust reflectivity is of 10%$/100$ nm over the 480-900 nm interval, with a shallower slope towards redder wavelengths. We use the $\mathrm{Af}\rho$ to quantify the dust production and measure values of 65$\pm$4 cm, 75$\pm$4 cm, and 82$\pm$4 cm in the V, R, and I bands respectively. We detect several jets in the coma, as well as the dust trail. Finally, using a novel method combining spectral and spatial information, we detect the forbidden oxygen emission line at 630 nm. Using this line we derive a water production rate of $1.5\pm 0.6\times 10^{26}molec./s$, assuming all oxygen atoms come from the photo-dissociation of water.

arXiv commentAccepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics

References in corpus (14)

• The MUSE second-generation VLT instrument
• Molecfit: A general tool for telluric absorption correction. I. Method and application to ESO instruments
• Molecfit: A general tool for telluric absorption correction II. Quantitative evaluation on ESO-VLT X-Shooter spectra
• ZAP -- Enhanced PCA Sky Subtraction for Integral Field Spectroscopy
• Spectrophotometric properties of the nucleus of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko from the OSIRIS instrument onboard the ROSETTA spacecraft
• Ensemble Properties of Comets in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey
• The Main Belt Comets and Ice in the Solar System
• The Surface Distributions of the Production of the Major Volatile Species, H2O, CO2, CO and O2, from the Nucleus of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko throughout the Rosetta Mission as Measured by the ROSINA Double Focusing Mass Spectrometer
• Coupled Chemistry-Emission Model for Atomic Oxygen Green and Red-doublet Emissions in Comet C/1996 B2 Hyakutake
• Forbidden oxygen lines in comets at various heliocentric distances
• Evolution of H${}_2$O, CO, and CO${}_2$ Production in Comet C/2009 P1 Garradd During the 2011-2012 Apparition
• Mt. Wendelstein Imaging of the Post-Perihelion Dust Coma of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in 2015/2016
• Distant activity of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in 2014: Ground-based results during the Rosetta pre-landing phase
• Gemini and Lowell Observations of 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko During the Rosetta Mission

Cited by in corpus (3)

• Coma environment of comet C/2017 K2 around the water ice sublimation boundary observed with VLT/MUSE
• Ionic emissions and activity evolution in comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE): Insights from long-slit spectroscopy and photometry
• VLT spectropolarimetry of comet 67P: Dust environment around the end of its intense Southern summer