Abstract
Context. The tangential Yarkovsky-O'Keefe-Radzievskii-Paddack (YORP) effect is a thermophysical effect that can alter the rotation rate of asteroids and is distinct from the so-called normal YORP effect, but to date has only been studied for asteroids with zero obliquity.
Aims. We aim to study the tangential YORP force produced by spherical boulders on the surface of an asteroid with an arbitrary obliquity.
Methods. A finite element method is used to simulate heat conductivity inside a boulder, to find the recoil force experienced by it.
Then an ellipsoidal asteroid uniformly covered by these types of boulders is considered and the torque is numerically integrated over its surface. Results.
Tangential YORP is found to operate on non-zero obliquities and decreases by a factor of two for increasing obliquity.