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B. W. Hapke, J. L. Piatek (U. of Pittsburgh), R. M. Nelson, W. D. Smythe, A. S. Hale (JPL)
Shepard and Arvidson [1] discovered that the solid surfaces of rocks exhibit an opposition effect. We have measured the phase curve of a natural surface of a piece of solid basalt between 0.05 and 5 degrees in circularly polarized light using the JPL long arm goniometer and confirmed that it has an opposition effect. The circular polarization ratio (CPR) increased with decreasing phase angle, consistent with a coherent backscatter opposition effect (CBOE)
Recent laboratory investigations of the CBOE in planetary regolith analogs [2,3,4] have revealed that the width of the peak is remarkably insensitive to particle size, in strong contrast to theoretical expectations. We have hypothesized that one of the reasons for this might be that multiple scattering between irregularities, such as scratches, on the surfaces of a particle could cause coherent backscatter, in addition to scattering between particles. To test this hypothesis we ground the surface of a piece of plate glass with 5 micrometer abrasive and measured its phase curve. As the phase angle decreases, the intensity increases and the CPR decreases, consistent with specular reflection. However, near zero phase there is a nonlinear rise about 2 degrees wide superimposed on the linear specular peak accompanied by an increase in CPR, showing that coherent backscatter is occuring. A piece of commercial diffusing glass exhibited the same phenomena. These results support our hypothesis and also provide a possible explanation for the observations of opposition effects from the solid surfaces of rocks.
This research was supported by a grant from NASA's PGG Program
References cited: [1] Shepard and Arvidson, Icarus, 141, 172-178 (1999). [2] Nelson et al, Icarus, 147, 545-558 (2000). [3] Nelson et al, Planet. Space Sci., 50, 849-856 (2002). [4] Piatek et al, Abstract, DPS Conference (2003).
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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 35 #4
© 2003. The American Astronomical Soceity.