Photometric variability of Charon at 2.2 microns

by: Bosh, A. S.; Young, L. A.; Elliot, J. L.; Hammel, H. B.; Baron, R. L.

ABSTRACT

Pluto-Charon images obtained on each of four nights at 2.2, 1.2, and 1.7
microns are presently fitted by a two-source image model in which the
position of Charon and the ratio of its signal to that of Pluto are free
parameters. At 2.2 microns, Charon is fainter than Pluto by magnitudes
which, when combined with Pluto-Charon system photometry, yield apparent
magnitudes of 15.01 or - 0.08 for Charon at 0.06 lightcurve phase and
15.46 or - 0.05 at lightcurve phase 0.42. In view of these results, Charon
is variable in this filter bypass due to geometric albedo changes as a
function of longitude.

Icarus, ISSN 0019-1035, vol. 95, Feb. 1992, p. 319-324.