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Comet Swift–Tuttle
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Comet Swift–Tuttle
Comet Swift–Tuttle (formally designated 109P/Swift–Tuttle) is a large periodic comet with a 1995 (osculating) orbital period of 133 years that is in a 1:11 orbital resonance with Jupiter. It fits the classical definition of a Halley-type comet, which has an orbital period between 20 and 200 years. The comet was independently discovered by Lewis Swift on 16 July 1862 and by Horace Parnell Tuttle on 19 July 1862.
Its nucleus is 26 km (16 mi) in diameter. Swift–Tuttle is the parent body of the Perseid meteor shower, perhaps the best known shower and among the most reliable in performance.
The comet made a return appearance in 1992, when it was rediscovered by Japanese astronomer Tsuruhiko Kiuchi and became visible with binoculars. It was last observed in April 1995 when it was 8.6 AU (1.3 billion km) from the Sun. In 2126, it will likely be a bright naked-eye comet, potentially reaching an apparent magnitude of about 0.7.
Chinese records indicate that, in 188, the comet reached apparent magnitude 0.1. Observation was also recorded in 69 BCE, and it was probably visible to the naked eye in 322 BCE.
In the discovery year of 1862, the comet was as bright as Polaris.
After the 1862 observations, it was incorrectly theorized that the comet would return between 1979 and 1983. However, it had been suggested in 1902 that this was the same comet as that observed by Ignatius Kegler on 3 July 1737 and on this basis Brian Marsden calculated correctly that it would return in 1992.
The comet's perihelion is just under that of Earth, while its aphelion is just over that of Pluto. An unusual aspect of its orbit is that it was recently captured into a 1:11 orbital resonance with Jupiter; it completes one orbit for every 11 of Jupiter. It was the first comet in a retrograde orbit to be found in a resonance. In principle this would mean that its proper long-term average period would be 130.48 years, as it librates about the resonance. Over the short term, between epochs 1737 and 2126 the orbital period varies between 128 and 136 years. However, it only entered this resonance about 1000 years ago, and will probably exit the resonance in several thousand years.
The comet is on an orbit that makes repeated close approaches to the Earth–Moon system, and has an Earth-MOID (Minimum orbit intersection distance) of 0.0009 AU (0.13 million km; 0.084 million mi). Upon its September 1992 rediscovery, the comet's date of perihelion passage was off from the 1973 prediction by 17 days. It was then noticed that if its next perihelion passage (July 2126) was also off by another 15 days (July 26), the comet could impact the Earth or the Moon on 14 August 2126.
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Comet Swift–Tuttle
Comet Swift–Tuttle (formally designated 109P/Swift–Tuttle) is a large periodic comet with a 1995 (osculating) orbital period of 133 years that is in a 1:11 orbital resonance with Jupiter. It fits the classical definition of a Halley-type comet, which has an orbital period between 20 and 200 years. The comet was independently discovered by Lewis Swift on 16 July 1862 and by Horace Parnell Tuttle on 19 July 1862.
Its nucleus is 26 km (16 mi) in diameter. Swift–Tuttle is the parent body of the Perseid meteor shower, perhaps the best known shower and among the most reliable in performance.
The comet made a return appearance in 1992, when it was rediscovered by Japanese astronomer Tsuruhiko Kiuchi and became visible with binoculars. It was last observed in April 1995 when it was 8.6 AU (1.3 billion km) from the Sun. In 2126, it will likely be a bright naked-eye comet, potentially reaching an apparent magnitude of about 0.7.
Chinese records indicate that, in 188, the comet reached apparent magnitude 0.1. Observation was also recorded in 69 BCE, and it was probably visible to the naked eye in 322 BCE.
In the discovery year of 1862, the comet was as bright as Polaris.
After the 1862 observations, it was incorrectly theorized that the comet would return between 1979 and 1983. However, it had been suggested in 1902 that this was the same comet as that observed by Ignatius Kegler on 3 July 1737 and on this basis Brian Marsden calculated correctly that it would return in 1992.
The comet's perihelion is just under that of Earth, while its aphelion is just over that of Pluto. An unusual aspect of its orbit is that it was recently captured into a 1:11 orbital resonance with Jupiter; it completes one orbit for every 11 of Jupiter. It was the first comet in a retrograde orbit to be found in a resonance. In principle this would mean that its proper long-term average period would be 130.48 years, as it librates about the resonance. Over the short term, between epochs 1737 and 2126 the orbital period varies between 128 and 136 years. However, it only entered this resonance about 1000 years ago, and will probably exit the resonance in several thousand years.
The comet is on an orbit that makes repeated close approaches to the Earth–Moon system, and has an Earth-MOID (Minimum orbit intersection distance) of 0.0009 AU (0.13 million km; 0.084 million mi). Upon its September 1992 rediscovery, the comet's date of perihelion passage was off from the 1973 prediction by 17 days. It was then noticed that if its next perihelion passage (July 2126) was also off by another 15 days (July 26), the comet could impact the Earth or the Moon on 14 August 2126.
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