The DOI matches its Crossref record; 95 of the 96 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
THE ACTIVE ASTEROIDS
Open accessAbstract
Some asteroids eject dust, unexpectedly producing transient, comet-like comae and tails. First ascribed to the sublimation of near-surface water ice, mass-losing asteroids (also called "main-belt comets") can in fact be driven by a surprising diversity of mechanisms. In this paper, we consider 11 dynamical asteroids losing mass, in nine of which the ejected material is spatially resolved. We address mechanisms for producing mass loss including rotational instability, impact ejection, electrostatic repulsion, radiation pressure sweeping, dehydration stresses, and thermal fracture, in addition to the sublimation of ice. In two objects (133P and 238P) the repetitive nature of the observed activity leaves ice sublimation as the only reasonable explanation, while in a third ((596) Scheila), a recent impact is the cause. Another impact may account for activity in P/2010 A2, but this tiny object can also be explained as having shed mass after reaching rotational instability. Mass loss from (3200) Phaethon is probably due to cracking or dehydration at extreme (∼1000 K) perihelion temperatures, perhaps aided by radiation pressure sweeping. For the other bodies, the mass-loss mechanisms remain unidentified, pending the acquisition of more and better data. While the active asteroid sample size remains small, the evidence for an astonishing diversity of mass-loss processes in these bodies is clear.
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“Only a few such objects are currently known ( Jewitt et al. 2011; Jewitt 2012 ) ; LSST will increase the sample of such objects to ∼ 100.”
From LSST: From Science Drivers to Reference Design and Anticipated Data Products (2019) · cites this paper as Jewitt 2012
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Overview of Water-Ice in Asteroids—Targets of a Revolution by LSST and JWST
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A Near-Earth Object Model Calibrated to Earth Impactors
Deam, S., Devillepoix, H. A. R., David Nesvorný, A., Shober, P., Sansom, E. K., Albers, J., Anderson, E., Benkhaldoun, Z., Brown, P. G. M., Daly, L., et al. (2026) · The Astronomical Journal · doi:10.3847/1538-3881/ae2fc5
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Busarev, V. V., Petrova, E. V., Shcherbina, M. P., Бурлак, М. А., & Ikonnikova, N. P. (2026) · Solar System Research · doi:10.1134/s0038094626600423
“On the other hand, ice accumulated in the parent bodies of asteroids as they formed near the ice line in the early Solar System (Lewis, 1974; Busarev et al., 2003; Jewitt et al., 2007; Dodson-Robison et al., 2009; Jewitt, 2012).”
Frontier Scientific Issues in Kinetic Impact Asteroid Defense
Li, M., Wang, K., Qi, Z. H. O. U., & Wang, C. (2026) · Journal of Deep Space of Exploration · doi:10.3724/j.issn.2096-9287.2026.20260048
Metadata
- Authors
- Jewitt, D.
- Affiliations
- University of California, Los Angeles (US)
- Corresponding author
- Jewitt, David
- ORCID
- Jewitt, David
- Venue
- The Astronomical Journal
- Publisher
- American Astronomical Society
- Published
- 2012-02-09
- Volume
- 143
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 66
- ISSN
- 0004-6256 (ISSN-L)
- 1538-3881
- OpenAlex
- W2951973812
- Cited by
- 318
- References
- 96
- Citations by year
- 2026: 11 · 2025: 12 · 2024: 30 · 2023: 22 · 2022: 22 · 2021: 18 · 2020: 20 · 2019: 17 · 2018: 20 · 2017: 23 · 2016: 21 · 2015: 39 · 2014: 29 · 2013: 19 · 2012: 14
- FWCI
- 17.68
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- The Astronomical Journal (publishedVersion)
- arXiv (Cornell University) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Space and Planetary Science › Astro and Planetary Science
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Aerospace Engineering › Space Satellite Systems and Control
- Physical Sciences › Physics and Astronomy › Astronomy and Astrophysics › Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies
- Keywords
- active asteroids, main-belt comets, mass loss, dust ejection, water ice sublimation, rotational instability, impact ejection, electrostatic repulsion, dehydration, thermal fracture, 3200 Phaethon, asteroid dynamics
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