Re: (meteorobs) meteorites from Geminids?

• To: Meteor Observing Mailing List <meteorobs@latrade.com>
• Subject: Re: (meteorobs) meteorites from Geminids?
• From: Lew Gramer <dedalus>
• Date: Wed, 19 Aug 98 15:57:58 -0400
• In-Reply-To: Your message of "Wed, 19 Aug 98 15:20:59 +0200." <3.0.5.32.19980819152059.008b14b0@hydra.cc.ruudot nl>
• Reply-To: meteorobs@latrade.com
• Sender: owner-meteorobs

Thanks for an interesting reply, Marco! I've heard the idea that Phaeton (the 
parent object of the Geminid meteoroid stream) is a "dead comet": if I remember 
right, the idea was that it was a more "normal" periodic comet, whose orbit was 
perturbed in the last few hundred (thousand?) years, bringing it MUCH closer to 
the sun and "burning up" all its sublimatable material.

But I'd also heard a competing theory that Phaeton was really a "true" asteroid 
(whatever that is), and that a recent (Kyears?) impact with another body had 
been the genesis of the GEMs. I guess either way, though, it seems like it 
might be very unusual as meteoroid streams go.

Has anyone heard of any recent, direct measurements of Phaeton's size and/or 
surface spectrum? Just curious... As always! :)

Clear skies!
Lew

• Re: (meteorobs) meteorites from Geminids?
• From: Casper ter Kuile <pegasoft@cc.ruudot nl>

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