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[33.05] Analysis of CO Emission in Comet C/2002 T7 (LINEAR) from Infrared Observations

W. M. Anderson Jr. (Catholic Univ. of America/NASA-GSFC), M. A. DiSanti, M. J. Mumma (NASA-GSFC), N. Dello Russo (Catholic Univ. of America/NASA-GSFC), B. P. Bonev (Univ. of Toledo/ NASA-GSFC), K. Magee-Sauer (Rowan University), E. L. Gibb (Univ. of Notre Dame)

Cometary nuclei are the most primitive remnants of the early Solar System. Their physical and chemical attributes allow a glimpse into the conditions in which the icy bodies formed. Only in recent years has it been possible to routinely study parent volatiles in the infrared. A significant variation in composition among ten comets sampled to date has been demonstrated, and this forms the foundation of a new cometary taxonomy based on chemistry.

In spring 2004, we observed comet C/2002 T7 (LINEAR) using the facility echelle spectrometer (CSHELL) at the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility on Mauna Kea, Hawaii. CSHELL offers seeing-limited spatial resolution and sufficiently high spectral resolving power (R ~ 2.5 x 10⁴) to permit line-by-line intensities to be measured along its 30-arcsecond-long slit. Emission lines from multiple molecular species were targeted in the ~ 3 to 5 micron infrared region, and our observations revealed an extremely rich chemistry in comet T7. Here we present production rates, mixing ratios, and rotational temperatures for CO spanning UT 3 - 9 May 2004, based on preliminary analysis of lines in the R and P branches of the v = 1-0 fundamental ro-vibrational band near 4.7 microns. Through comparison with abundances of other oxygen-bearing molecules (specifically H₂CO and CH₃OH), potential implications for the comet's volatile carbon-oxygen history will be discussed as well.

This research is supported by the NASA Planetary Astronomy Program, through RTOP 344-32-98 to M. A. DiSanti.

The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: 88anderw@cua.edu

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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 36 #4
© 2004. The American Astronomical Soceity.