Orbital bistatic radar observations of asteroid Vesta by the Dawn mission.

ABSTRACT: We present orbital bistatic radar observations of a small-body, acquired during occultation by the Dawn spacecraft at asteroid Vesta. The radar forward-scattering properties of different reflection sites are used to assess the textural properties of Vesta's surface at centimeter-to-decimeter scales and are compared to subsurface hydrogen concentrations observed by Dawn's Gamma Ray and Neutron Detector to assess potential volatile occurrence in the surface and shallow subsurface. We observe significant differences in surface radar reflectivity, implying substantial spatial variations in centimeter-to-decimeter-scale surface roughness. Our results suggest that unlike the Moon, Vesta's surface roughness variations cannot be explained by cratering processes only. In particular, the occurrence

SUBMITTER: Palmer EM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5595829 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature