Spin-induced mass loss from rubble piles and the formation of asteroid satellites and pairs

International audienceNon-gravitational effects may change the angular momentum of asteroids up to a few tens of km in size to the point that rotational stability is lost at high spin rates. Once instability is initiated, mass loss may happen and potentially create satellites or dynamically detached components (pairs). We have studied this problem by means of numerical simulations and investigated the production of secondary objects of different sizes by direct splitting of the parent body under the assumption of a low internal angle of friction