Mechanisms behind Phaethon’s contrasting particle-size distributions

Determine the mechanisms responsible for the seemingly inconsistent particle-size distributions observed on (3200) Phaethon, including coarse surface grains, micrometer-scale ejected dust, and millimeter-scale Geminid meteoroids.

Background

The paper describes apparently incompatible size distributions associated with (3200) Phaethon: the surface is expected to contain grains on the order of hundreds of micrometers, the ejected dust consists of particles around one micrometer, and the Geminid meteoroid stream contains millimeter-scale particles. Understanding how these populations are produced and related is important for reconstructing the surface evolution and dust-loss processes of near-Sun asteroids. The paper investigates radiative alteration and sintering as possible contributors but does not establish the origin of all three populations.