Abstract
The interrelations between the physical parameters of a cometary nucleus, and the morphology of the dust tail and its streamers are systematically investigated by means of a model developed by Beißer (1990a), involving a rotating nucleus. The analysis of streamers in the tail, using direct modeling and synchrone grids, provides a suitable tool to deduce substantial informations on the nucleus' state of rotation. Opportunities and limitations of this analysis are discussed. Dust emission parameters like the distribution of active regions on the nucleus, or the emission characteristics can only be determined if certain other physical properties of the nucleus have been independently measured before.
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Grothues, H.G. What do streamers in the dust tail tell about the cometary nucleus?. Astrophys Space Sci 229, 1–22 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00658562
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00658562