PSJC #111 March 16, 2012
Henry Hsieh (IfA)
Activity in the Asteroid Belt: Main-Belt Comets and Disrupted
Asteroids
Main-belt comets exhibit cometary activity indicative of ice sublimation
yet are dynamically indistinguishable from main-belt asteroids and appear
to have formed in situ in the inner solar system (inside the orbit of
Jupiter). Much of the current interest in studying these objects lies in
the possible role of icy main-belt objects in the primordial delivery of
terrestrial water. I will outline our current state of understanding of
these rare and still poorly understood objects, as well as discuss the new
complication presented by disrupted asteroids, which appear to actually be
inert objects that temporarily mimic comets as a result of recent impacts.