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DellaGiustina DN, Burke KN, Walsh KJ, Smith PH, Golish DR, Bierhaus EB, Ballouz RL, Becker TL, Campins H, Tatsumi E, Yumoto K, Sugita S, Deshapriya JDP, Cloutis EA, Clark BE, Hendrix AR, Sen A, Al Asad MM, Daly MG, Applin DM, Avdellidou C, Barucci MA, Becker KJ, Bennett CA, Bottke WF, Brodbeck JI, Connolly HC, Delbo M, de Leon J, Drouet d'Aubigny CY, Edmundson KL, Fornasier S, Hamilton VE, Hasselmann PH, Hergenrother CW, Howell ES, Jawin ER, Kaplan HH, Le Corre L, Lim LF, Li JY, Michel P, Molaro JL, Nolan MC, Nolau J, Pajola M, Parkinson A, Popescu M, Porter NA, Rizk B, Rizos JL, Ryan AJ, Rozitis B, Shultz NK, Simon AA, Trang D, Van Auken RB, Wolner CWV, Lauretta DS. Variations in color and reflectance on the surface of asteroid (101955) Bennu. Science 2020; 370:science.abc3660. [PMID: 33033157 DOI: 10.1126/science.abc3660] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2020] [Accepted: 09/24/2020] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Visible-wavelength color and reflectance provide information about the geologic history of planetary surfaces. Here we present multispectral images (0.44 to 0.89 micrometers) of near-Earth asteroid (101955) Bennu. The surface has variable colors overlain on a moderately blue global terrain. Two primary boulder types are distinguishable by their reflectance and texture. Space weathering of Bennu surface materials does not simply progress from red to blue (or vice versa). Instead, freshly exposed, redder surfaces initially brighten in the near-ultraviolet region (i.e., become bluer at shorter wavelengths), then brighten in the visible to near-infrared region, leading to Bennu's moderately blue average color. Craters indicate that the time scale of these color changes is ~105 years. We attribute the reflectance and color variation to a combination of primordial heterogeneity and varying exposure ages.
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Affiliation(s)
- D N DellaGiustina
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA. .,Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - K N Burke
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - K J Walsh
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - P H Smith
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - D R Golish
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | | | - R-L Ballouz
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - T L Becker
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - H Campins
- Department of Physics, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, USA
| | - E Tatsumi
- Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias and Departamento de Astrofísica, Universidad de La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain.,Department of Earth and Planetary Science, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan
| | - K Yumoto
- Department of Earth and Planetary Science, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan
| | - S Sugita
- Department of Earth and Planetary Science, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan
| | - J D Prasanna Deshapriya
- LESIA (Laboratoire d'Etudes Spatiales et d'Instrumentation en Astrophysique), Observatoire de Paris, Université PSL (Paris Sciences & Lettres), CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique), Université de Paris, Sorbonne Université, 92195 Meudon, France
| | - E A Cloutis
- Department of Geography, University of Winnipeg, Winnipeg, MB R3B 2E9, Canada
| | - B E Clark
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Ithaca College, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - A R Hendrix
- Planetary Science Institute, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - A Sen
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Ithaca College, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - M M Al Asad
- Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - M G Daly
- The Centre for Research in Earth and Space Science, York University, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - D M Applin
- Department of Geography, University of Winnipeg, Winnipeg, MB R3B 2E9, Canada
| | - C Avdellidou
- Université Côte d'Azur, Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur, CNRS, Laboratoire Lagrange, Nice, France
| | - M A Barucci
- LESIA (Laboratoire d'Etudes Spatiales et d'Instrumentation en Astrophysique), Observatoire de Paris, Université PSL (Paris Sciences & Lettres), CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique), Université de Paris, Sorbonne Université, 92195 Meudon, France
| | - K J Becker
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - C A Bennett
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - W F Bottke
- Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - J I Brodbeck
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - H C Connolly
- Department of Geology, Rowan University, Glassboro, NJ, USA
| | - M Delbo
- Université Côte d'Azur, Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur, CNRS, Laboratoire Lagrange, Nice, France
| | - J de Leon
- Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias and Departamento de Astrofísica, Universidad de La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain
| | | | - K L Edmundson
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - S Fornasier
- LESIA (Laboratoire d'Etudes Spatiales et d'Instrumentation en Astrophysique), Observatoire de Paris, Université PSL (Paris Sciences & Lettres), CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique), Université de Paris, Sorbonne Université, 92195 Meudon, France.,Institut Universitaire de France (IUF), 1 rue Descartes, 75231 Paris CEDEX 05, France
| | | | - P H Hasselmann
- LESIA (Laboratoire d'Etudes Spatiales et d'Instrumentation en Astrophysique), Observatoire de Paris, Université PSL (Paris Sciences & Lettres), CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique), Université de Paris, Sorbonne Université, 92195 Meudon, France
| | - C W Hergenrother
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - E S Howell
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - E R Jawin
- Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History, Washington, DC, USA
| | - H H Kaplan
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, USA
| | - L Le Corre
- Planetary Science Institute, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - L F Lim
- Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History, Washington, DC, USA
| | - J Y Li
- Planetary Science Institute, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - P Michel
- Université Côte d'Azur, Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur, CNRS, Laboratoire Lagrange, Nice, France
| | - J L Molaro
- Planetary Science Institute, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - M C Nolan
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - J Nolau
- Lockheed Martin Space, Littleton, CO, USA
| | - M Pajola
- Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF), Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova, Padua, Italy
| | - A Parkinson
- Department of Geography, University of Winnipeg, Winnipeg, MB R3B 2E9, Canada
| | - M Popescu
- Astronomical Institute of the Romanian Academy, Bucharest, Romania.,Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias and Departamento de Astrofísica, Universidad de La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain
| | - N A Porter
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - B Rizk
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - J L Rizos
- Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias and Departamento de Astrofísica, Universidad de La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain
| | - A J Ryan
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - B Rozitis
- The School of Physical Sciences, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
| | - N K Shultz
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - A A Simon
- NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, USA
| | - D Trang
- University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, Honolulu, HI, USA
| | - R B Van Auken
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - C W V Wolner
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - D S Lauretta
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
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