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The Rocky‐Like Behavior of Cometary Landslides on 67P/Churyumov‐Gerasimenko
Author(s) -
Lucchetti Alice,
Penasa Luca,
Pajola Maurizio,
Massironi Matteo,
Brunetti Maria Teresa,
Cremonese Gabriele,
Oklay Nilda,
Vincent JeanBaptiste,
Mottola Stefano,
Fornasier Sonia,
Sierks Holger,
Naletto Giampiero,
Lamy Philippe L.,
Rodrigo Rafael,
Koschny Detlef,
Davidsson Bjorn,
Barbieri Cesare,
Barucci Maria Antonietta,
Bertaux JeanLoup,
Bertini Ivano,
Bodewits Dennis,
Cambianica Pamela,
Da Deppo Vania,
Debei Stefano,
De Cecco Mariolino,
Deller Jacob,
Ferrari Sabrina,
Ferri Francesca,
Franceschi Marco,
Fulle Marco,
Gutiérrez Pedro,
Güttler Carsten,
Ip WingH.,
Keller Uwe,
Lara Luisa,
Lazzarin Monica,
Moreno Jose Lopez,
Marzari Francesco,
Tubiana Cecilia
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/2019gl085132
Subject(s) - comet , landslide , astrobiology , geology , crust , solar system , asteroid , geophysics , physics , seismology
Landslides have been identified on several solar system bodies, and different mechanisms have been proposed to explain their runout length. We analyze images from the Rosetta mission and report the global characterization of such features on comet 67P/Churyumov‐Gerasimenko's surface. By assuming the height to runout length as an approximation for the friction coefficient of landslide material, we find that on comet 67P, this ratio falls between 0.50 and 0.97. Such unexpected high values reveal a rocky‐type mechanical behavior that is much more akin to Earth dry landslides than to icy satellites' mass movements. This behavior indicates that 67P and likely comets in general are characterized by consolidated materials possibly rejecting the idea that they are fluffy aggregates. The variability of the runout length among 67P landslides can be attributed to the different volatile content located in the top few meters of the cometary crust, which can drive the mass movement.