Properties of meteors with double peaked light curves

Abstract

Twenty-one meteors showing double peaked light curves were analysed with observations collected with the Canadian Automated Meteor Observatory tracking system. Each event has orbital information, photometry, and at least one high-resolution observation. Two distinct light curve shapes were found: sudden double peaked curves, and smooth double peaked curves. The sudden peaked curves were produced by objects on asteroidal orbits and mostly showed noticeable fragmentation, while the smooth peaked curves were produced by cometary meteoroids and predominantly showed little to no visible fragmentation. An attempt to model these meteors as single bodies with two chemical components was unsuccessful, implying that fragmentation must be included in meteoroid ablation models.