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P.S. Barrera-Pineda (Instituto Nacional de Astrofisica Optica y Electronica), A.J. Lovell (Agnes Scott College), F.P. Schloerb (Five College Radio Astronomy Obs., U. of Massachusetts), L. Carrasco (Instituto Nacional de Astrofisica Optica y Electronica)
We have obtained submillimetric observations of the asteroid 4 Vesta at 870 \mu m, carried out with the MPIfR 19-channel bolometer on the 10-m Heinrich Hertz Telescope during 14-17 December 2001. Calibrated observations from different days are folded according to rotational phase and assembled into a high-sensitivity thermal lightcurve. This thermal lightcurve has an amplitude of 20%, varying inversely to the visible lightcurves at the same rotational phase. The results of the thermal observations and lightcurve are compared with the high resolution HST images of Vesta (Thomas et al., 1997). High temperatures are observed in regions of low albedo, and low temperatures in regions of high albedo. Furthermore, there is a marked difference in the thermal emission between the two "hemispheres" of Vesta, as outlined in the geologic maps of Binzel et al (1997). We present the thermal lightcurve of Vesta for comparison to HST albedo maps and derived geologic units.
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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 34, #3< br> © 2002. The American Astronomical Soceity.