Optical spectroscopy of comets

Abstract

Comets are pristine remnants of the Solar system, composed of dust and ice. They remain inactive and undetectable for most of their orbit due to low temperatures. However, as they approach the Sun, volatile materials sublimate, expelling dust and creating a visible coma. Spectroscopic observations of comets help the simultaneous study of both the gas emissions and reflected sunlight from dust particles. By implementing a long slit, the spatial variations in molecular emissions can be analysed to be further used for other computations. Additionally, spatial information aids in extracting the characteristic profile of the Af(rho) parameter, revealing insights into the behaviour of dust emissions. A sufficiently long slit would prove advantageous in extracting information about the emissions occurring at different parts of the coma or even the tail. We can gain an overall comprehensive understanding of a comet's chemical composition and dust emission by constructively utilising low-resolution spectroscopy with the help of a long slit.