First observations of an outbursting comet with the MUSE integral-field spectrograph

摘要

We present the first observations of outbursting comet C/2015 ER61 (PANSTARRS) with the Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE). The comet was observed on April 9, 2017, only five days after it underwent a significant outburst during which the total brightness increased by a factor of ~7.5. Based on the MUSE observations, we produce simultaneous maps of the CN, C_(2), NH_(2)comae, and the dust coma. In turn, we applied image enhancement techniques in order to reveal features in the coma. By comparing the coma morphology for the dust and CN, C_(2), and NH_(2), we investigate the release mechanism of those gas species in the coma of comet ER61. We present evidence that NH_(2)could be released by icy or organic-rich dust grains.