19P/Borrelly
 |
|
| Discovery | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Alphonse Borrelly |
| Designations | |
| 1905 II; 1911 VIII; 1918 IV; 1925 VIII; 1932 IV; 1953 IV; 1960 V; 1967 VIII; 1974 VII; 1981 IV; 1987 XXXIII; 1994 XXX |
|
| Orbital characteristics | |
| Epoch September 8, 2001 (JD 2452160.5) | |
| Aphelion | 5.83 AU |
| Perihelion | 1.35 AU (May 28, 2015)[1] |
| 3.59 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.624 |
| 6.8 a | |
| Inclination | 30.3° |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 8×4×4 km[2] |
|
Mean radius
|
2.4 km[3] |
| Mass | 2×1013 kg[4] |
|
Mean density
|
0.3 g/cm³[5] |
| Albedo | Albedo: 0.03[6] |
Comet Borrelly or Borrelly's Comet (official designation: 19P/Borrelly) is a periodic comet, which was visited by the spacecraft Deep Space 1 in 2001. The comet last came to perihelion (closest approach to the Sun) on May 28, 2015.[1] The comet's nucleus, seen in the image on the right, is particularly notable for being shaped like a bowling pin.
Discovery
The comet was discovered by Alphonse Borrelly during a routine search for comets at Marseilles, France on December 28, 1904.
Deep Space 1 flyby
On September 21, 2001 the spacecraft Deep Space 1, which was launched to test new equipment in space, performed a flyby of Borrelly. It was steered toward the comet during the extended mission of the craft, and presented an unexpected bonus for the mission scientists. Despite the failure of a system that helped determine its orientation, Deep Space 1 managed to send back to Earth what were, at the time, the best images and other science data from a comet.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/profile.cfm?Object=Com_19PBorrelly&Display=Facts&System=Metric
- ↑ Using the volume of an ellipsoid of 8x4x4km * a rubble pile density of 0.3 g/cm³ yields a mass (m=d*v) of 2.0E+13 kg.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
External links
- http://jcometobs.web.fc2.com/pcmtn/0019p.htm
- 19P – Gary W. Kronk's Cometography
- Elements and Ephemeris for 19P/Borrelly – Minor Planet Center
| Periodic comets (by number) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Previous 18D/Perrine-Mrkos |
19P/Borrelly | Next 20D/Westphal |
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