109P/Swift-Tuttle
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| Comet (List of comets) |
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|---|---|
| No image. | |
| Discovery | |
| Discoverer | Lewis Swift Horace Parnell Tuttle |
| Discovery date | July 16, 1862 |
| Alternate designations |
1737 N1; 1737 II; 1862 O1; 1862 III; 1992 S2; 1992 XXVIII |
| Orbital elements A | |
|
|
|
| Eccentricity (e) | 0.9632 |
| Semi-major axis (a) | 26.092 AU |
| Perihelion (q) | 0.9595 AU |
| Aphelion (Q) | 51.225 AU |
| Orbital period (P) | 133.28 a |
| Inclination (i) | 113.45° |
| Last perihelion date | December 11, 1992 |
| Next est. perihelion date | July 12, 2126 |
Comet Swift-Tuttle (formally designated as 109P/Swift-Tuttle) was independently discovered by Lewis Swift on July 16, 1862 and by Horace Parnell Tuttle on July 19, 1862.
The comet made a return appearance in 1992, when it was rediscovered by Japanese astronomer Tsuruhiko Kiuchi.
It is the parent body of the Perseid meteor shower - perhaps the best known shower and also among the most reliable in performance.
According to a New Scientist article, the comet is on an orbit which will almost certainly eventually hit either the Earth or the Moon, though not within this millennium.[1]
[edit] External links
| Comets | ||
|---|---|---|
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