Abstract
Most of impacts onto the bodies in the solar system are oblique. However, there are few experiments that measure the crater process in oblique impact. We have, therefore, developed a new technique using a laser sheet and a high-speed camera that directly observes crater growth in oblique impacts. We irradiate a target with a vertical laser-sheet. The laser-sheet provides an illuminated line on the target surface along the trajectory of a projectile. Launched by a single-stage light-gas gun, a projectile impacts the target to form a crater at various impact angles (angle = 90, 75, 60, 45, 30, 15). Using our high-speed camera, we observe a series of snapshots showing changes in the laser line with time. By analyzing this line from the snapshots, we can obtain temporal changes in crater depth and diameter. Using this technique we study crater formations and their dependence on impact angles.
