Abstract
Abstract We present observations of the sudden outburst of the A Carinid meteor shower recorded with the Southern Argentina Agile MEteor Radar Orbital System (SAAMER-OS) near the south toroidal sporadic region. The outburst peaked between 21 UT and 22 UT on 2020 October 14 and lasted 7 days (199° ≤ λ ⊙ ≤ 205°), with a mean Sun-centered geocentric ecliptic radiant of λ g − λ ⊙ = 271.°04, β g = −76.°4, and a geocentric speed of 33.3 km s−1. Assuming a mass index value of s = 2.0, we compute a peak 24 hr average flux of 0.029 meteoroids km−2 hr−1 to a limit of 9th magnitude, which is equivalent to a zenithal hourly rate (ZHR) of 5.7 and comparable to other established showers with similar mass indices. By further estimating the peak fluxes for other typical mass index values, we find that the outburst likely never exceeded a maximum ZHR of ∼44, well below the activity of other strong showers. The mean orbital elements resemble those of a short-period object, a = 3.5 ± 0.1 au, q ≃ 1 au, e = 0.72 ± 0.02, i = 55.°8 ± 0.°3, ω = 1° ± 173°, and Ω = 21.°7, and are similar to those derived for two previous shower outbursts observed with SAAMER-OS at high southern ecliptic latitudes. Using the D ′ criterion did not reveal a parent object associated with this shower in the known object catalogs.
Highlights
The solar system, like other planetary systems (i.e., β Pictoris, Burrows et al 1995; Fomalhaut, Kalas et al 2005), contains a circumsolar second-generation dusty disk known as the Zodiacal Dust Cloud (ZDC) populated by debris from asteroid collisions and the breakup and activity of comets and interstellar medium grains (Jenniskens 2006; Nesvorny et al 2010)
By further estimating the peak fluxes for other typical mass index values, we find that the outburst likely never exceeded a maximum zenithal hourly rate (ZHR) of ∼44, well below the activity of other strong showers
Observations of the influx of material at Earth’s atmosphere reveal two populations clearly distinguishable in the distribution of the ZDC: the sporadic background sources composed of dynamically evolved submillimeter-sized meteoroids and micron-size dust grains largely affected by radiation pressure, and meteor showers, streams of younger and larger meteoroids that in principle could be linked dynamically to parent bodies, namely, asteroids and comets, due to their similarity in orbital elements (Jenniskens 2006)
Summary
The solar system, like other planetary systems (i.e., β Pictoris, Burrows et al 1995; Fomalhaut, Kalas et al 2005), contains a circumsolar second-generation dusty disk known as the Zodiacal Dust Cloud (ZDC) populated by debris from asteroid collisions and the breakup and activity of comets and interstellar medium grains (Jenniskens 2006; Nesvorny et al 2010). Dedicated radar and optical meteor surveys probe the dust content in the inner solar system via detection of meteoroid ablation high in Earth’s atmosphere, providing a reliable way to examine the dissemination of material populating the ZDC (Baggaley 2002; Brown et al 2010; Jenniskens et al 2011; Janches et al 2015). Observations of the influx of material at Earth’s atmosphere reveal two populations clearly distinguishable in the distribution of the ZDC: the sporadic background sources composed of dynamically evolved submillimeter-sized meteoroids and micron-size dust grains largely affected by radiation pressure, and meteor showers, streams of younger and larger meteoroids that in principle could be linked dynamically to parent bodies, namely, asteroids and comets, due to their similarity in orbital elements (Jenniskens 2006).
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