Showing posts with label Halley's comet. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Halley's comet. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

How Jupiter Effects Halley's Comet

Image of 2007 Orionids, showing Orion constellation in the backdrop. (Credit: S. Quirk)

Jupiter Helps Halley’s Comet Give Us More Spectacular Meteor Displays -- Science Daily

ScienceDaily (Mar. 27, 2012) — The dramatic appearance of Halley's comet in the night sky has been observed and recorded by astronomers since 240 BC. Now a study shows that the orbital influences of Jupiter on the comet and the debris it leaves in its wake are responsible for periodic outbursts of activity in the Orionid meteor showers. The results will be presented by Aswin Sekhar at the National Astronomy Meeting in Manchester on the 27th of March.

Halley's comet orbits the Sun every 75-76 years on average. As its nucleus approaches the Sun, it heats up and releases gas and dust that form the spectacular tail. This outgassing leaves a trail of debris around the orbit.

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