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| Bus–DeMeo taxonomy | |
|---|---|
| Name | Bus–DeMeo taxonomy |
| Creator | Schelte J. Bus; Francesca DeMeo |
| Introduced | 2009 |
| Domain | Planetary science |
Bus–DeMeo taxonomy The Bus–DeMeo taxonomy is a spectral classification system for minor planets developed by Schelte J. Bus and Francesca DeMeo that extended prior asteroid taxonomies into the near-infrared; it refined the compositional grouping of asteroids used by researchers at institutions such as the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Smithsonian Institution, and European Space Agency. Building on earlier work from programs at the University of Arizona and collaborations with teams at the Lowell Observatory, the scheme is widely cited in studies associated with missions like OSIRIS-REx and NEOWISE. It serves as a bridge between spectral surveys from observatories including Keck Observatory and spacecraft datasets from missions such as Hayabusa2 and Dawn.
The taxonomy evolved from the work of astronomers connected to projects at the University of Hawaii and the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, following initial classification frameworks by researchers affiliated with the PDS Small Bodies Node and the International Astronomical Union. Schelte J. Bus produced a visible-wavelength taxonomy in the context of surveys using instruments at the Palomar Observatory and collaborations with scientists at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory; Francesca DeMeo later incorporated near-infrared data leveraging facilities such as the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility and the European Southern Observatory to produce the combined visible–near-IR Bus–DeMeo system. The development intersected with spectral libraries maintained by groups at the Smithsonian Institution and analysis techniques used by teams contributing to the Minor Planet Center.
The Bus–DeMeo scheme defines classes including S-complex, C-complex, X-complex, D-type, K-type, L-type, T-type, Q-type, V-type, and transitional subtypes, categories aligned with mineralogies discussed in literature from the Lunar and Planetary Institute and museums like the American Museum of Natural History. Each class corresponds to spectral features that relate to materials studied in laboratories at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research and by researchers publishing in journals associated with the American Geophysical Union and the Royal Astronomical Society. The taxonomy maps observational spectra onto compositional interpretations used by teams involved with sample-return missions such as Hayabusa and OSIRIS-REx and on-ground analyses led by groups at the Carnegie Institution for Science.
Bus–DeMeo classifications rely on visible and near-infrared spectroscopy collected using instruments at facilities like Keck Observatory, the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility, and the Very Large Telescope, with data reduction methods developed by groups at the California Institute of Technology and the University of California, Berkeley. Observers apply principal component analysis and spectral slope measurements techniques similar to those used in studies from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the University of Arizona; laboratory spectral calibration draws on meteorite collections curated at the Smithsonian Institution and experimental work at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research. The method integrates photometric surveys conducted by programs such as Pan-STARRS and spectroscopy campaigns coordinated with databases maintained by the Minor Planet Center.
Compared with the Tholen taxonomy developed through work at the Air Force Geophysics Laboratory and the University of Arizona and the SMASS system associated with the Lowell Observatory and researchers like David J. Tholen, Bus–DeMeo extends class definitions into the near-infrared and refines subdivisions similar to efforts connected to the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Its classes are often cross-referenced in mission planning documents from NASA and strategic studies at the European Space Agency, and are contrasted in spectral analyses published by authors affiliated with the Lunar and Planetary Institute and the Royal Astronomical Society. Researchers from the Carnegie Institution for Science and the Smithsonian Institution commonly compare Bus–DeMeo assignments with mineralogical inferences derived from meteorite taxonomy maintained at the Natural History Museum, London.
The taxonomy aids target selection for missions such as Hayabusa2, OSIRIS-REx, and Dawn, informs impact hazard assessments coordinated with the Planetary Defense Coordination Office, and supports compositional mapping efforts used by teams at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the European Space Agency. It underpins research into solar system formation topics explored at the Lunar and Planetary Institute and influences laboratory studies at institutions like the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research and the Smithsonian Institution. The classification also guides investigations into asteroid–meteorite links pursued by groups at the Natural History Museum, London and the Carnegie Institution for Science, informing hypotheses tested in publications of the American Geophysical Union.
Critiques originate from researchers at the University of Arizona and analysts publishing in journals associated with the Royal Astronomical Society, who note that spectral degeneracy, space weathering effects documented by teams on Hayabusa and Hayabusa2, and limited signal-to-noise in near-IR observations from facilities like the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility can complicate classifications. Comparisons with compositional analyses from meteorite studies at the Smithsonian Institution and the Natural History Museum, London highlight ambiguities for X-complex and C-complex assignments noted in reviews by the Lunar and Planetary Institute. Methodological concerns raised by researchers at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the European Space Agency call for complementary data such as albedo measurements from NEOWISE and in situ analyses from missions like OSIRIS-REx.
Prominent objects classified using Bus–DeMeo criteria include near-Earth asteroid (101955) Bennu studied by OSIRIS-REx, carbonaceous targets like (162173) Ryugu observed by Hayabusa2, basaltic bodies such as (4) Vesta examined by Dawn, and Q-type bodies typified by examples studied in work affiliated with the University of Arizona and the Smithsonian Institution. Other referenced asteroids in case studies include (25143) Itokawa associated with Hayabusa, (433) Eros connected to NEAR Shoemaker, and main-belt objects surveyed by teams at the Keck Observatory and the Very Large Telescope. These cases illustrate links to sample analyses performed at institutions like the Natural History Museum, London and the Carnegie Institution for Science.
Category:Asteroid classification