Interpretation of a glitch observed in the very small dust grain data at halley's comet

Abstract

In a previous article describing the cloud of attogram dust particles surrounding Comet Halley, the present authors noted a sharp break in the curve of signal amplitude (related to particle size) versus distance to the comet. Arguments were given which supported the explanation that the break was instrumental rather than due to a physical structure in the coma. At that time no conclusive evidence was available. In the meantime a paper by other authors has appeared which concluded that this “glitch” was due to a physical process in the coma and presented a theory to explain it. Recently the present authors have found very strong evidence in the telemetry data that the glitch was instrumental. However this finding does not change the conclusion by all the authors referenced here that the signals at large distances from the comet were due to attogram dust particles.