Study of Broken up Primitive Asteroids to Understand early Solar System Evolution.

This is to study the primitive asteroid families of the central and outer main belt and comparing them with outer solar system bodies, such as the Jupiter Trojans. The PhD candidate will work on: (i) the characterisation of the physical properties (e.g., spectra, albedos, size distribution of the fragments) of the dark, primitive families, (ii) the re-assessment of the family members using their physical properties, (iii) the discovery of dark primitive families that escaped identification with the classical methods up to now. Other important results will be the detection of the first primitive differentiated family (our team has already a candidate) as well as the creation of the list of primitive planetesimals of the central and outer main belt that survive today.