Constraints on the gamma-ray emission from Small Solar System Bodies with the Fermi Large Area Telescope data
arXiv:2305.12436 · doi:10.3847/1538-4357/acd5ce
Abstract
All known Small Solar System Bodies have diameters between a few meters and a few thousands of kilometers. Based on the collisional evolution of Solar System Bodies, a larger number of asteroids with diameters down to m is thought to exist. As all Solar System Bodies, Small Bodies can be passive sources of high-energy gamma rays, produced by the interaction of energetic cosmic rays impinging on their surfaces. Since the majority of known asteroids are in orbits between Mars and Jupiter (in a region known as the Main Belt), we expect them to produce a diffuse emission close to the ecliptic plane. In this work we have studied the gamma-ray emission coming from the ecliptic using the data collected by the Large Area Telescope onboard the Fermi satellite. We have fit the results with simulations of the gamma-ray intensity at source level (calculated with the software FLUKA) to constrain the Small Solar System Bodies population. Finally, we have proposed a model describing the distribution of asteroid sizes and we have used the LAT data to constrain the gamma-ray emission expected from this model and, in turn, on the model itself.
arXiv comment21 pages, 18 figures; accepted for publication in ApJ;
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