arXiv subjects

Masateru Ishiguro

Publications and source records attributed to Masateru Ishiguro.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Dark asteroids exhibiting intermediate characteristics between C and X types

Large main-belt asteroids with visible geometric albedos below 0.1 are predominantly classified within the C- and X-complex spectroscopic classes. C-type and dark X-type asteroids typically exhibit flat to slightly negative and positive spectral slopes, respectively. They are further distinguished by the presence (for C-types) or absence (for dark X-types) of a shallow absorption feature near 1.0-1.3 micron. We serendipitously discovered that the asteroids 1093 Freda and 1390 Abastumani display spectral characteristics intermediate between these two classes, combining a positive visible-to-near-infrared spectral slope with a shallow absorption band. A search in the literature reveals additional asteroids with similar properties. The existence of such objects, spanning a continuum of spectral shapes between C- and dark X-types, may point to a common genetic origin. Their spectral behavior could be explained by the presence of cronstedtite, an Fe-rich serpentine, on their surfaces.

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arXiv2026

Dust Properties of the Interstellar Object 3I/ATLAS Revealed by Optical and Near-Infrared Polarimetry

We present independent polarimetric observations of the interstellar object 3I/ATLAS, including the first near-infrared polarimetric measurements. Using imaging polarimeters, we measured the degree of linear polarization from the visible RC band (0.64 μm) to the near-infrared KS band (2.25 μm), and investigated its dependence on solar phase angle (polarization phase curve; PPC) and wavelength (polarization color curve; PCC). We confirm that the PPC of 3I/ATLAS differs significantly from those of typical Solar System comets, showing an unusually large polarization amplitude. This PPC shows no significant change in the RC band across perihelion passage, despite the perihelion lying within the water snow line. This indicates that the unusual polarimetric behavior of 3I/ATLAS is unlikely to be driven by transient volatile activity, but instead reflects intrinsic optical properties of refractory dust particles. The PCC increases with wavelength over 0.6-1.2 μm and peaks at 1.5-2.0 μm, suggesting that the dominant scattering units are dust aggregates composed of submicron-sized monomers, broadly consistent with interstellar dust and solar-system cometary aggregates. Taken together, our results indicate that 3I/ATLAS preserves polarimetric properties characteristic of a primitive cometary planetesimal formed in another planetary system, with a refractory dust composition that differs from that typically observed among Solar System comets, despite sharing a similar size scale of the aggregate building blocks.

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arXiv2026

Pre-perihelion Emergence of the CN Gas Coma in 3I/ATLAS Temporally and Spatially Resolved by the 7-Dimensional Telescope

We present time-series medium-band (R~20-40) observations of the third interstellar object 3I/ATLAS (C/2025 N1) obtained with the 7-Dimensional Telescope (7DT), enabling spatially resolved monitoring of its gas and dust activity from 2025 July to September. The m400-band image (lambda_c = 400 nm, Delta lambda approx 25 nm) reveals the emergence of pronounced and spatially extended CN emission at heliocentric distances r_h < 3 au. This onset is consistently identified across multiple diagnostics, including a break in the light-curve evolution, excess reflectance, inward expansion of annular excess beyond 10,000-20,000 km, growth of the coma half-light radius from ~11,000 to ~19,000 km, and a rapid rise in the CN production rate Q_CN relative to Af rho. We further separate the CN-emitting and dust-scattered components through two-dimensional surface-brightness fitting into inner (dust) and outer (gas) components. The outer component preserves a nearly constant profile shape, varying only in normalization, implying relatively fast expansion of CN-bearing molecules. Together, these results reveal a transition in the optical from dust-dominated scattering at large heliocentric distances to volatile-driven, gas-dominated activity as 3I/ATLAS enters the inner Solar System. The timing and characteristics of the CN activation resemble the volatile enhancement observed in 2I/Borisov, suggesting that both known active interstellar objects exhibit comparable activation behavior at heliocentric distances of ~2-3 au.

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arXiv2026

SPHEREx Pre-Perihelion Mapping of $\mathrm{H_2O}$, $\mathrm{CO_2}$, and $\mathrm{CO}$ in Interstellar Object 3I/ATLAS

From 01- to 15-Aug-2025UT, the SPHEREx spacecraft observed interstellar object 3I/ATLAS. Using $R=40-130$ spectrophotometry at $λ=0.7-5$ $μ$m, light curves, spectra, and imaging of ATLAS were obtained. From these, robust detections of water gas emission at $2.7-2.8$ $μ$m and $CO_2$ gas at $4.23-4.27$ $μ$m plus tentative detections of $^{13}CO_2$ and $CO$ gas were found. A slightly extended $H_2O$ coma was detected, and a huge $CO_2$ atmosphere of extending out to at least $4.2 \times 10^{5}$ km was discovered. Gas production rates and 1$σ$ errors for $H_2O$, $^{12}CO_2$, $^{13}CO_2$, and $CO$ were $Q_{gas} = 3.2 \times 10^{26} \pm 20\%$, $1.6 \times 10^{27} \pm 10\%$, $1.3 \times 10^{25} \pm 25\%$, and $1.0 \times 10^{26} \pm 25\%$, respectively. Co-addition of all $λ= 1.0-1.5$ $μ$m scattered light continuum images from produced a high SNR image consistent with an unresolved source. The scattered light lightcurve showed $\lesssim 15\%$ variability over the observation period. The absolute brightness of ATLAS at $1.0-1.5$ $μ$m is consistent with a $< 2.5$ km radius nucleus surrounded by a 100 times brighter coma. The $1.5-4.0$ $μ$m continuum structure shows a strong feature commensurate with water ice absorption seen in KBOs and distant comets. The observed cometary behavior of ATLAS, including its preponderance of $CO_2$ emission, lack of $CO$ output, small size, and predominance of large icy chunks of material in a flux-dominant coma is similar to the behavior of short period comet 103P/Hartley 2, the ''hyperactive comet'' flyby target of the NASA Deep Impact extended mission in 2010. This correspondence suggests that ISOs can be significantly thermally processed before ejection into the ISM, and by comparison to 1I and 2I, can be widely variable in their physical outcome.

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arXiv2026

SOLO: wide-field asteroid light curve monitoring system for SPHEREx

We present the Solar system Objects Light curve Observatory (SOLO), a wide-field, high-cadence optical survey system designed to obtain absolutely calibrated asteroid light curves, converted to the Gaia G-band photometric system, in support of the SPHEREx Solar System Object Catalog (SSOC). SOLO was installed at the Sierra Remote Observatories (SRO) in California, USA, in July 2025 and is optimized for continuous, multi-night monitoring of asteroid brightness variations. We describe the system configuration, remote operation, and data reduction pipeline, and evaluate its optical and photometric performance using commissioning data. SOLO achieves stable photometric calibration across the 11.6 deg^2 field of view and reaches a 10-sigma limiting magnitude of G ~ 17.5 for a 180 sec exposure. Sample asteroid light curves obtained over multiple nights demonstrate consistent absolute photometry at the same rotational phase, validating the estimated performance. Finally, we outline the planned operational use of SOLO in connection with NASA's SPHEREx mission. Full science operations of SOLO are scheduled to begin in January 2026. Using these data, we aim to obtain on the order of 10^3 absolutely calibrated asteroid light curves per year in the Gaia G-band, which will be used to support the construction and scientific utilization of the SPHEREx SSOC.

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arXiv2026

SQUIDPOL: Seoul National University QUadruple Imaging Device for POLarimetry

We present SQUIDPOL, a low-cost, multi-channel optical imaging polarimeter that performs simultaneous linear polarization measurements using a rotating half-wave plate, a non-polarizing beam splitter, and four wire-grid filters. We show that the off-the-shelf non-polarizing beam splitter introduces measurable polarization-dependent systematics, which can bias polarimetric measurements if left uncorrected. We quantify this effect for both transmitted and reflected beams and incorporate a correction scheme into the data-analysis pipeline. On-sky validation demonstrates stable and reproducible performance, achieving a polarization accuracy of about 0.15 percent for bright polarized standard stars. Mounted on the 60-cm Ritchey-Chretien telescope (focal length 4200 mm, f/7) at the Pyeongchang Observatory of Seoul National University, SQUIDPOL provides an effective common field of view of 13.5 by 8.2 arcminutes with a pixel scale of 0.45 arcseconds per pixel and supports standard B, V, R_C, and I_C filters.

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arXiv2025

Resonant structures in exozodiacal clouds created by exo-Earths in the habitable zone of late-type stars

Earth-like exoplanets can create resonant structures in exozodiacal dust through mean motion resonances (MMRs). These structures not only suggest the presence of such planets, but also act as potential noise sources in future mid-infrared (MIR) nulling interferometry observations. We aim to investigate how resonant structures in exozodiacal dust vary across stellar spectral types (F4--M4), and to evaluate how stellar wind drag affects their morphology and brightness in mature planetary systems. We conducted numerical simulations of dust dynamics, extending earlier studies by including spectral type variation in stellar wind drag in addition to Poynting-Robertson (PR) drag. Our models represented systems of a few Gyr hosting an Earth-like exoplanet in the habitable zone (HZ). We produced spatially resolved maps of optical depth and thermal emission for different stellar spectral types. Our simulations showed that resonant ring structures were formed for all stellar spectral types considered. In particular, we found that stellar wind drag played a critical role in shaping dust dynamics around old M-type stars, where it could dominate over PR drag by a factor of approximately 44. This reduced the contrast of resonant rings relative to the background disk, compared to cases without spectral type variation in stellar wind. Across different spectral types, the optical depth contrast of the resonant ring increased for lower-mass stars, assuming a fixed background level. Asymmetric thermal emission distributions were derived across all spectral types, which peaked for K-type stars. Our findings highlight the importance of incorporating both resonant dynamics and stellar wind effects when modeling exozodiacal dust around stars of different spectral types.

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arXiv2025

Simulation of Impact-induced seismic shaking on asteroid (25143) Itokawa to address its resurfacing process

The surface of asteroid (25143) Itokawa shows both fresh and mature terrains, despite its short space weathering timescale of approximately 1000 years, as inferred from recent studies. Seismic shaking triggered by the impact that formed the 8-meter Kamoi crater has been proposed as a possible explanation for the diversity. This study aims to examine whether the seismic shaking induced by the impact could account for the observed spatial variations in space weathering and further constrain the internal structure of Itokawa. Assuming that the Kamoi crater was formed by a recent impact, we conducted three-dimensional seismic wave propagation simulations and applied a simplified landslide model to estimate surface accelerations and boulder displacements. Our results show that even a low-energy case (1 % of the nominal seismic energy) produces surface accelerations sufficient to destabilize the surface materials. The simulated boulder displacements are consistent with the observed distribution of space weathering degrees even on the opposite hemisphere. We estimate the seismic diffusivity to be 1000-2000 m2 s-1 and the seismic efficiency to be in the range of 5.0 x 10-8 to 5.0 x 10-7, implying that Itokawa's interior contains blocks tens of meters across and acts as a strongly scattering medium.

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arXiv2025

Optical and Near-Infrared Contemporaneous Polarimetry of C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS)

We conducted contemporaneous optical and near-infrared polarimetric and spectroscopic observations of C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS, hereafter T-A) from 2024 October 16 to December 17, covering a wide range of phase angles (20-123 deg) and wavelength (0.5-2.3 um). We paid special attention to gas contamination in the dust polarization using these data. As a result, we find the maximum polarization degree $P_max=31.21 +- 0.05 %, 33.52 +- 0.06 %, 35.12 +- 0.01 %, 37.57 +- 0.01 %, and 35.35 +- 0.01 % in the Rc-, Ic-, J-, H-, and Ks-bands, respectively. Although dust polarization shows a red slope at shorter wavelengths and can peak around 1.6 um, the phase angle at which maximum polarization occurs exhibits less dependence on wavelength (alpha_max ~ 90 deg - 95 deg). Although only a few historically bright comets, such as West, Halley, and Hale-Bopp, have undergone such extensive dust-polarization observations, our measurements are generally consistent with those of two comets that possibly originated from the Oort Cloud (West and Halley). From these results, we conjecture that the optical properties and growth processes of dust in the presolar nebula, which formed these cometary nuclei, were likely uniform.

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arXiv2025

Surface dynamics and geophysical environment of asteroid (3200) Phaethon

Context. (3200) Phaethon is a ~5-km-diameter near-Earth asteroid with a small perihelion distance of 0.14 au and is the parent body of the Geminids. JAXA's DESTINY+ mission will fly by Phaethon in the near future. Aims. We aim to support the pre-flight planning for the DESTINY+ mission by performing a geophysical analysis on Phaethon's surface and near-surface environment utilizing the latest shape model from numerous observations. Methods. We employed the soft-sphere discrete element method code PKDGRAV to construct a "mascon" model of Phaethon and determine its gravity. We then computed the geopotential on Phaethon and derived various physical quantities related to its surface and near-surface dynamics. Results. We calculated geophysical quantities for the surface, including surface acceleration and slope. To assess whether surface objects could be launched off the surface, we computed the escape speed, return speed, Jacobi speed, and the location and stability of equilibrium points around Phaethon, and conducted a simple dynamical simulation of launched particles. Conclusions. Our results suggest that a large depression feature in the northern hemisphere could harbor exposed subsurface material and the freshest material on Phaethon. We propose that this depression be considered a key area for observation by the DESTINY+ mission

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arXiv2024

Enlargement of depressions on comet 81P/Wild 2: Constraint based on 30-year cometary activity in the inner Solar System

Context. The Stardust flyby mission to Jupiter-family comet (JFC) 81P/Wild 2 (hereafter, 81P) captured its dense quasicircular depressions. Nevertheless, the formation mechanism remains a subject of ongoing debate. Aims. We aimed to study how cometary activity contributed to the formation and enlargement of these depressions by analyzing Stardust flyby images and ground-based observation data. Methods. We calculated the time-dependent water production rate of 81P inside the snow line (<3 au) and compared it with the observational data. In addition, we estimated the fallback debris mass using an observation-based model, where a dust ejection from 81P was considered to reproduce ground-based observations of the dust tail. We compared the total excavated volume of water and dust with the total depression volume derived using the 81P shape model. Results. We find that the total excavated volume after 81P was injected into the inner Solar System accounts for up to only 30 % of the depression volume. This insufficiency suggests that a large portion (>70 %) of the depressions had already existed before the comet was injected into the current orbit. In addition, we estimate the dust-to-ice mass ratio for 81P to be 2-14. Conclusions. We suggest that most depressions were formed in the source region of the Kuiper-belt objects.

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arXiv2024

New evidence supporting past dust ejections from active asteroid (4015) Wilson-Harrington

Context. (4015) Wilson-Harrington (hereafter, WH) was discovered as a comet in 1949 but has a dynamical property consistent with that of a near-Earth asteroid. Although there is a report that the 1949 activity is associated with an ion tail, the cause of the activity has not yet been identified. Aims. This work aims to reveal the mysterious comet-like activity of the near-Earth asteroid. Methods. We conducted new polarimetric observations of WH from May 2022 to January 2023, reanalyses of the photographic plate images taken at the time of its discovery in 1949, and dust tail simulation modelings, where the dust terminal velocity and ejection epoch are taken into account. Results. We found that this object shows polarization characteristics similar to those of low-albedo asteroids. We derived the geometric albedo ranging from pV = 0.076 +- 0.010 to pV = 0.094 +- 0.018 from our polarimetry (the values vary depending on the data used for fitting and the slope-albedo relationship coefficients). In addition, the 1949 image showed an increase in brightness around the nucleus. Furthermore, we found that the color of the tail is consistent with sunlight, suggesting that the 1949 activity is associated with dust ejection. From the dust tail analysis, ~9 x 10^5 kg of material was ejected episodically at a low velocity equivalent to or even slower than the escape velocity. Conclusions. We conclude that WH is most likely an active asteroid of main belt origin and that the activity in 1949 was likely triggered by mass shedding due to fast rotation.

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arXiv2024

Study of hydrated asteroids via their polarimetric properties at low phase angles

Context. Ch-type asteroids are distinctive among other dark asteroids in that they exhibit deep negative polarization branches (NPBs). Nevertheless, the physical and compositional properties that cause their polarimetric distinctiveness are less investigated. Aims. We aim to investigate the polarimetric uniqueness of Ch-type asteroids by making databases of various observational quantities (i.e., spectroscopic and photometric properties as well as polarimetric ones) of dark asteroids.Methods. We conducted an intensive polarimetric survey of 52 dark asteroids (including 31 Ch-type asteroids) in the R$_\mathrm{C}$-band to increase the size of polarimetric samples. The observed data are compiled with previous polarimetric, spectroscopic, and photometric archival data to find their correlations. Results. We find remarkable correlations between these observed quantities, particularly the depth of NPBs and their spectroscopic features associated with the hydrated minerals. The amplitude of the opposition effect in photometric properties also shows correlations with polarimetric and spectral properties. However, these observed quantities do not show noticeable correlations with the geometric albedo, thermal inertia, and diameter of asteroids. Conclusions. Based on the observational evidence, we arrive at our conclusion that the submicrometer-sized structures (fibrous or flaky puff pastry-like structures in phyllosilicates) in the regolith particles could contribute to the distinctive NPBs of hydrated asteroids.

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arXiv2024

Quantitative grain size estimation on airless bodies from the negative polarization branch. II. Dawn mission targets (4) Vesta and (1) Ceres

Context. Sunlight scattered from the surface of an airless body is generally partially polarized, and the corresponding polarization state includes information about the scattering surface, such as albedo, surface grain sizes, composition, and taxonomic types. Aims. We conducted polarimetry of two large airless bodies, the Dawn mission targets (1) Ceres and (4) Vesta, in the near-infrared region. We further investigated the change in the polarimetric phase curves over the wavelengths expected from previous works. Methods. We used the Nishiharima Infrared Camera (NIC) installed at the Nishi-Harima Astronomical Observatory (NHAO) to observe these objects at multiple geometric configurations in the J, H, and $\mathrm{K_s}$ bands ($ λ\sim 1.2\mathrm{-}2.3 \mathrm{μm} $). Results. Polarimetric parameters were determined and compared with previously reported experimental results. In particular, Vesta exhibits a characteristic change in the negative polarization branch as the wavelength increases to the $\mathrm{K_s}$ band, which we interpret as an indication of the dominant existence of $D \sim 10\mathrm{-}20 \mathrm{μm}$ particles. Our approach is supported by empirical reasoning and coincides well with an independent, theory-driven approach based on thermal modeling. Conclusions. This work demonstrates how near-infrared polarimetry can be utilized to quantitatively determine the particle size of airless objects. This finding will have important implications for asteroid taxonomy and regolith evolution.

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arXiv2024

Quantitative grain size estimation on airless bodies from the negative polarization branch. I. Insights from experiments and lunar observations

This work explores characteristics of the negative polarization branch (NPB), which occurs in scattered light from rough surfaces, with particular focus on the effects of fine particles. Factors such as albedo, compression, roughness, and the refractive index are considered to determine their influence on the NPB. This study compiles experimental data and lunar observations to derive insights from a wide array of literature. Employing our proposed methodology, we estimate the representative grain sizes on the lunar surface to be $D \sim 1 \mathrm{-} 2 \mathrm{μm}$, with $D \lesssim 2 \mathrm{-} 4 \mathrm{μm}$, consistent with observed grain size frequency distributions in laboratory settings for lunar fines. Considering Mars, we propose that the finest particles are likely lacking ($D\gg 10 \mathrm{μm}$), which matches previous estimations. This study highlights the potential of multiwavelength, particularly near-infrared, polarimetry for precisely gauging small particles on airless celestial bodies. The conclusions provided here extend to cross-validation with grain sizes derived from thermal modeling, asteroid taxonomic classification, and regolith evolution studies.

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arXiv2024

Dynamical study of Geminid formation assuming a rotational instability scenario

Context: Various ideas have been proposed to explain the formation of the Geminid meteoroid stream from the asteroid (3200) Phaethon. However, little has been studied about the Geminid formation based on the assumption that mass ejection happened from this asteroid via rotational instability. Aims: Here, we present the first dynamical study of the Geminid formation, taking account of low-velocity mass ejection as a result of Phaethon's rotational instability. Methods: We conducted numerical simulations for 1 mm and 1 cm particles ejected in a wide range of ejection epochs (10$^3$--10$^5$ years ago). We computed the minimum orbital intersecting distance (MOID) of the dust particles as the realistic condition, that is, the Earth's radius and the Earth-Moon distance to be observed as the Geminid meteoroid stream. Results: We found that the low-velocity ejection model produced the Geminid-like meteoroid stream when the dust particles were ejected more than $\sim$2,000 years ago. In this case, close encounters with terrestrial planets would transport some dust particles from the Phaethon orbit (the current MOID is as large as $\sim$460 Earth radius) to the Earth-intersecting orbits. The optimal ejection epoch and the estimated mass were 18\,000 years ago and $\sim 10^{10} - 10^{14}$ g (<0.1 \% of the Phaethon mass). Conclusions: Our results suggest that the JAXA's DESTINY\textsuperscript{+} mission has the potential to find evidence of recent rotational instability recorded on the Phaethon's surface.

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arXiv2023

Multicolor Photometry of Tiny Near-Earth Asteroid 2015 RN$_{35}$ Across a Wide Range of Phase Angles: Possible Mission Accessible A-type Asteroid

Studying small near-Earth asteroids is important to understand their dynamical histories and origins as well as to mitigate the damage of the asteroid impact to the Earth. We report the results of multicolor photometry of the tiny near-Earth asteroid 2015 RN$_{35}$ using the 3.8 m Seimei telescope in Japan and the TRAPPIST-South telescope in Chile over 17 nights in 2022 December and 2023 January. We observed 2015 RN$_{35}$ across a wide range of phase angles from 2$^{\circ}$ to 30$^{\circ}$ in the $g$, $r$, $i$, and $z$ bands in the Pan-STARRS system. These lightcurves show that 2015 RN$_{35}$ is in a non-principal axis spin state with two characteristic periods of $1149.7\pm0.3$ s and $896.01\pm0.01$ s. We found that a slope of a visible spectrum of 2015 RN$_{35}$ is as red as asteroid (269) Justitia, one of the very red objects in the main belt, which indicates that 2015 RN$_{35}$ can be classified as an A- or Z-type asteroid. In conjunction with the shallow slope of the phase curve, we suppose that 2015 RN$_{35}$ is a high-albedo A-type asteroid. We demonstrated that surface properties of tiny asteroids could be well constrained by intensive observations across a wide range of phase angles. 2015 RN$_{35}$ is a possible mission accessible A-type near-Earth asteroid with a small $Δv$ of 11.801 km s$^{-1}$ in the launch window between 2030 and 2035.

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arXiv2023

Photometry and Polarimetry of 2010 XC$_{15}$: Observational Confirmation of E-type Near-Earth Asteroid Pair

Asteroid systems such as binaries and pairs are indicative of physical properties and dynamical histories of the Small Solar System Bodies. Although numerous observational and theoretical studies have been carried out, the formation mechanism of asteroid pairs is still unclear, especially for near-Earth asteroid (NEA) pairs. We conducted a series of optical photometric and polarimetric observations of a small NEA 2010 XC$_{15}$ in 2022 December to investigate its surface properties. The rotation period of 2010 XC$_{15}$ is possibly a few to several dozen hours and color indices of 2010 XC$_{15}$ are derived as $g-r=0.435\pm0.008$, $r-i=0.158\pm0.017$, and $r-z=0.186\pm0.009$ in the Pan-STARRS system. The linear polarization degrees of 2010 XC$_{15}$ are a few percent at the phase angle range of 58$^{\circ}$ to 114$^{\circ}$. We found that 2010 XC$_{15}$ is a rare E-type NEA on the basis of its photometric and polarimetric properties. Taking the similarity of not only physical properties but also dynamical integrals and the rarity of E-type NEAs into account, we suppose that 2010 XC$_{15}$ and 1998 WT$_{24}$ are of common origin (i.e., asteroid pair). These two NEAs are the sixth NEA pair and first E-type NEA pair ever confirmed, possibly formed by rotational fission. We conjecture that the parent body of 2010 XC$_{15}$ and 1998 WT$_{24}$ was transported from the main-belt through the $ν_6$ resonance or Hungaria region.

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