29P/Schwassmann–Wachmann
Periodic comet with 14 year orbit / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Comet 29P/Schwassmann–Wachmann, also known as Schwassmann–Wachmann 1, was discovered on November 15, 1927, by Arnold Schwassmann and Arno Arthur Wachmann at the Hamburg Observatory in Bergedorf, Germany.[4] It was discovered photographically, when the comet was in outburst and the magnitude was about 13.[4] Precovery images of the comet from March 4, 1902, were found in 1931 and showed the comet at 12th magnitude.[4] It reached the last perihelion on March 7, 2019.[5] It came to opposition in late December 2022.[6]
Discovery | |
---|---|
Discovered by | Arnold Schwassmann Arno Arthur Wachmann |
Discovery date | November 15, 1927 |
Designations | |
1908 IV; 1927 II; 1941 VI; 1957 IV; 1974 II; 1989 XV; | |
Orbital characteristics | |
Epoch | March 6, 2006 |
Aphelion | 6.25 AU |
Perihelion | 5.722 AU |
Semi-major axis | 5.986 AU |
Eccentricity | 0.0441 |
Orbital period | 14.65 a |
Max. orbital speed | 12.7 km/s[1] |
Inclination | 9.3903° |
Last perihelion | March 7, 2019[2] |
Next perihelion | Feb 18, 2035[1] |
Physical characteristics | |
Dimensions | 60.4 ± 7.4 km[3] |
12.1 ± 1.2 d |
The comet is a member of a class of objects called "Centaurs", of which at least 500 are known.[7] These are small icy bodies with orbits between those of Jupiter and Neptune. The Centaurs have been recently perturbed inward from the Kuiper belt, a disk of trans-Neptunian objects occupying a region extending from the orbit of Neptune to approximately 50 AU from the Sun. Frequent perturbations by Jupiter[5] will likely accumulate and cause the comet to migrate either inward or outward by the year 4000.[8] A number of Centaurs appear to be dynamically and perhaps even physically related to 29P; such objects may traverse the coma of 29P when in outburst.[9]
The comet nucleus is estimated to be 60.4±7.4 kilometers[3] in diameter.[5]