Activity of comet 103P/Hartley 2 at the time of the EPOXI mission fly-by

Comet 103P/Hartley~2 was observed on Nov. 1-6, 2010, coinciding with the fly-by of the space probe EPOXI. The goal was to connect the large scale phenomena observed from the ground, with those at small scale observed from the spacecraft. The comet showed strong activity correlated with the rotation of its nucleus, also observed by the spacecraft. We report here the characterization of the solid component produced by this activity, via observations of the emission in two spectral regions where only grain scattering of the solar radiation is present. We show that the grains produced by this activity had a lifetime of the order of 5 hours, compatible with the spacecraft observations of the large icy chunks. Moreover, the grains produced by one of the active regions have a very red color. This suggests an organic component mixed with the ice in the grains.Comment: 11 pages, 7 figures, Icarus in pres

Simulation of Europa's water plume

Plumes on Europa would be extremely interesting science and mission targets, particularly due to the unique opportunity to obtain direct information on the subsurface composition, thereby addressing Europa's potential habitability. The existence of water plume on the Jupiter's moon Europa has been long speculated until the recent discover. HST imaged surpluses of hydrogen Lyman alpha and oxygen emissions above the southern hemisphere in December 2012 that are consistent with two 200 km high plumes of water vapor (Roth et al. 2013). In previous works ballistic cryovolcanism has been considered and modeled as a possible mechanism for the formation of low-albedo features on Europa's surface (Fagents et al. 2000). Our simulation agrees with the model of Fagents et al. (2000) and consists of icy particles that follow ballistic trajectories. The goal of such an analysis is to define the height, the distribution and the extension of the icy particles falling on the moon's surface as well as the thickness of the deposited layer. We expect to observe high albedo regions in contrast with the background albedo of Europa surface since we consider that material falling after a cryovolcanic plume consists of snow. In order to understand if this phenomenon is detectable we convert the particles deposit in a pixel image of albedo data. We consider also the limb view of the plume because, even if this detection requires optimal viewing geometry, it is easier detectable in principle against sky. Furthermore, we are studying the loss rates due to impact electron dissociation and ionization to understand how these reactions decrease the intensity of the phenomenon. We expect to obtain constraints on imaging requirements necessary to detect potential plumes that could be useful for ESA's JUICE mission, and in particular for the JANUS camera (Palumbo et al. 2014)

Basaltic material in the main belt: a tale of two (or more) parent bodies?

The majority of basaltic objects in the main belt are dynamically connected to Vesta, the largest differentiated asteroid known. Others, due to their current orbital parameters, cannot be easily dynamically linked to Vesta. This is particularly true for all the basaltic asteroids located beyond 2.5 au, where lies the 3:1 mean motion resonance with Jupiter. In order to investigate the presence of other V-type asteroids in the middle and outer main belt (MOVs) we started an observational campaign to spectroscopically characterize in the visible range MOV candidates. We observed 18 basaltic candidates from TNG and ESO-NTT between 2015 and 2016. We derived spectral parameters using the same approach adopted in our recent statistical analysis and we compared our data with orbital parameters to look for possible clusters of MOVs in the main belt, symptomatic for a new basaltic family. Our analysis seemed to point out that MOVs show different spectral parameters respect to other basaltic bodies in the main belt, which could account for a diverse mineralogy than Vesta; moreover, some of them belong to the Eos family, suggesting the possibility of another basaltic progenitor. This could have strong repercussions on the temperature gradient present in the early Solar system, and on our current understanding of differentiation processes. <P /

Planning the HRIC (High Resolution Imaging Channel) observations of Mercury surface

The High Resolution Imaging Channel (HRIC) of SIMBIOSYS [1]onboard the BepiColombo mission to Mercury, is the visible imaging camera devoted to the detailed characterization of the Hermean surface. The potential huge amount of data that HRIC can produce must cope with the allocated (and shared) mission resources in terms of power, data volume,and pointing maneuvers. For this reason , well before the mission launch, it is extremely important the definition of an operative plan compatible with both the available resources and the scientific objectives accomplishment

Investigating the composition of Potentially Hazardous Asteroids with the NEO-SURFACE survey

There is a high degree of diversity among the physical properties of the Potentially Hazardous asteroids (PHAs). For these objects, the physical characterization is essential to define a successful mitigation mission, therefore ground-based surveys like NEO-SURFACE could provide a fundamental contribution. Our analysis suggest a prevalence of silicate S-types in the PHA population, which could be due in principle to the high efficiency of the transport mechanisms in the inner main belt, or to an observational bias due to the fact that S-types are brighter. <P /

The SSDC Role in the LICIACube Mission: Data Management and the MATISSE Tool

Light Italian Cubesat for Imaging of Asteroids (LICIACube) is an Italian mission managed by the Italian Space Agency (ASI) and part of the NASA Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) planetary defense mission. Its main goals are to document the effects of the DART impact on Dimorphos, the secondary member of the (65803) Didymos binary asteroid system, characterizing the shape of the target body and performing dedicated scientific investigations on it. Within this framework, the mission Science Operations Center will be managed by the Space Science Data Center (ASI-SSDC), which will have the responsibility of processing, archiving, and disseminating the data acquired by the two LICIACube onboard cameras. In order to better accomplish this task, SSDC also plans to use and modify its scientific webtool Multi-purpose Advanced Tool for Instruments for the solar system Exploration (MATISSE), making it the primary tool for the LICIACube data analysis, thanks to its advanced capabilities for searching and visualizing data, particularly useful for the irregular shapes common to several small bodies

Ejecta Evolution Following a Planned Impact into an Asteroid: The First Five Weeks

The impact of the DART spacecraft into Dimorphos, moon of the asteroid Didymos, changed Dimorphos' orbit substantially, largely from the ejection of material. We present results from twelve Earth-based facilities involved in a world-wide campaign to monitor the brightness and morphology of the ejecta in the first 35 days after impact. After an initial brightening of ~1.4 magnitudes, we find consistent dimming rates of 0.11-0.12 magnitudes/day in the first week, and 0.08-0.09 magnitudes/day over the entire study period. The system returned to its pre-impact brightness 24.3-25.3 days after impact through the primary ejecta tail remained. The dimming paused briefly eight days after impact, near in time to the appearance of the second tail. This was likely due to a secondary release of material after re-impact of a boulder released in the initial impact, through movement of the primary ejecta through the aperture likely played a role.Comment: 16 pages, 5 Figures, accepted in the Astrophysical Journal Letters (ApJL) on October 16, 202

How future surgery will benefit from SARS-COV-2-related measures: a SPIGC survey conveying the perspective of Italian surgeons

COVID-19 negatively affected surgical activity, but the potential benefits resulting from adopted measures remain unclear. The aim of this study was to evaluate the change in surgical activity and potential benefit from COVID-19 measures in perspective of Italian surgeons on behalf of SPIGC. A nationwide online survey on surgical practice before, during, and after COVID-19 pandemic was conducted in March-April 2022 (NCT:05323851). Effects of COVID-19 hospital-related measures on surgical patients' management and personal professional development across surgical specialties were explored. Data on demographics, pre-operative/peri-operative/post-operative management, and professional development were collected. Outcomes were matched with the corresponding volume. Four hundred and seventy-three respondents were included in final analysis across 14 surgical specialties. Since SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, application of telematic consultations (4.1% vs. 21.6%; p &lt; 0.0001) and diagnostic evaluations (16.4% vs. 42.2%; p &lt; 0.0001) increased. Elective surgical activities significantly reduced and surgeons opted more frequently for conservative management with a possible indication for elective (26.3% vs. 35.7%; p &lt; 0.0001) or urgent (20.4% vs. 38.5%; p &lt; 0.0001) surgery. All new COVID-related measures are perceived to be maintained in the future. Surgeons' personal education online increased from 12.6% (pre-COVID) to 86.6% (post-COVID; p &lt; 0.0001). Online educational activities are considered a beneficial effect from COVID pandemic (56.4%). COVID-19 had a great impact on surgical specialties, with significant reduction of operation volume. However, some forced changes turned out to be benefits. Isolation measures pushed the use of telemedicine and telemetric devices for outpatient practice and favored communication for educational purposes and surgeon-patient/family communication. From the Italian surgeons' perspective, COVID-related measures will continue to influence future surgical clinical practice

Ejecta Evolution Following a Planned Impact into an Asteroid: The First Five Weeks

The impact of the Double Asteroid Redirection Test spacecraft into Dimorphos, moon of the asteroid Didymos, changed Dimorphos’s orbit substantially, largely from the ejection of material. We present results from 12 Earth-based facilities involved in a world-wide campaign to monitor the brightness and morphology of the ejecta in the first 35 days after impact. After an initial brightening of ∼1.4 mag, we find consistent dimming rates of 0.11–0.12 mag day−1 in the first week, and 0.08–0.09 mag day−1 over the entire study period. The system returned to its pre-impact brightness 24.3–25.3 days after impact though the primary ejecta tail remained. The dimming paused briefly eight days after impact, near in time to the appearance of the second tail. This was likely due to a secondary release of material after re-impact of a boulder released in the initial impact, though movement of the primary ejecta through the aperture likely played a role