12:00–12:30 pm ERC 401
The Population of Interstellar Objects Detectable with the LSST and NEO Surveyor
Advisor: Jacob Bean
Several observational facilities capable of detecting numerous interstellar objects will become operational within the next decade. In preparation for these technological advances, we investigate the detection capabilities of two forthcoming and one currently operational surveys/telescopes: the Vera C. Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST), NEO Surveyor, and PAN-STARRS. Building on the work reported in Hoover et al. (2022), we perform numerical simulations of a statistically dense population of interstellar objects. To this end, we draw their velocities from a galactic kinematic distribution, map them to initial heliocentric positions, and integrate their subsequent trajectories. We expand upon our previous predictions by incorporating interstellar object size-frequency distributions corresponding to all Solar System objects and near-Earth asteroids only. We calculate that there will be ~ 4 - 25, ~ 8 - 50, and ~ 0.2 - 1 1I/`Oumuamua-like interstellar objects detectable by the LSST, NEO Surveyor, and PAN-STARRS per year, respectively. Moreover, we find that there is a ~45% chance that an interstellar object is detectable by both the LSST and NEO Surveyor contemporaneously. We find that these detection rates are approximately uniform over one simulated year. The solar anti-apex is the ideal location for searching for interstellar objects. Within a ~ 6315 square degree region centered at the solar anti-apex, the detection rate is enhanced by a factor of ~ 4. For detectable objects, we calculate the minimum delta-v required for in-situ rendezvous missions implementing single-impulse maneuvers and provide comprehensive statistics for the population. By solving the two-body Kepler problem for a hyperbolic trajectory, we estimate that ~10% of detectable objects require delta-v < 10 km/s. As an illustrative example we outline the trajectory of a hypothetical rendezvous mission to a simulated, detectable interstellar object.