Gustafsson, Annika2018-07-242018-07-242015Gustafsson, A. (2015). Rotational Properties of the Extraordinary Multi-tailed Asteroid P/2013 P5. Oregon Undergraduate Research Journal, 8(1). doi:10.5399/uo/ourj.8.1.42160-617Xhttps://hdl.handle.net/1794/2344727 pagesObservations made with the Hubble Space Telescope in September 2013 revealed that the asteroid known as P/2013 P5 appeared to have six comet-like tails. Jewitt et al. (2013) concluded that this extraordinary structure and activity could not be explained by traditional near-surface ice sublimation or collision events ejecting particles from the asteroid's surface. Instead, the most likely explanation is that this unusual object has been spun-up by solar radiation forces to a critical limit which has resulted in the rotational disruption of the asteroid causing the unique six-tail structure. This interpretation predicts that the nucleus of this comet-like asteroid should be in rapid rotation. In November 2013, broadband photometry of P/2013 P5 was obtained with Lowell Observatory's 4.3-meter Discovery Channel Telescope using the Large Monolithic Imager to investigate the possibility of rapid rotation. While the variation in the rotational light curve from these data was too small to be justifiable, morphological changes in the nucleus-coma system were observed.enCreative Commons BY-NC-ND 4.0-USP/2013 P5AsteroidsArticle10.5399/uo/ourj.8.1.4