118P/Shoemaker–Levy
From Infogalactic: the planetary knowledge core
118P when 2AU from the Sun
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Discovery | |
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Discovered by | Carolyn S. Shoemaker Eugene Merle Shoemaker David H. Levy |
Discovery date | February 9, 1991[1] |
Alternative designations |
118P/1991 C2; 1990 XII; 1991f; 118P/1995 M1 |
Orbital characteristics A | |
Epoch | May 1, 2009 (JD 2454952.5) |
Aphelion | 4.943 AU |
Perihelion | 1.984 AU |
Semi-major axis | 3.463 AU |
Eccentricity | 0.4272 |
Orbital period | 6.45 yr |
Inclination | 8.509° |
Last perihelion | January 2, 2010[2][3] |
Next perihelion | June 16, 2016[3] |
118P/Shoemaker–Levy (also known as periodic comet Shoemaker–Levy 4) is a comet discovered by astronomers Carolyn and Eugene M. Shoemaker and David Levy.[1]
During the 2010 apparition the comet became as bright as apparent magnitude 11.5.[4]
The comet nucleus is estimated to be 4.8 kilometers in diameter.[1]
On December 3, 2015, comet Shoemaker–Levy 4 will pass 0.0442 AU (6,610,000 km; 4,110,000 mi) from asteroid 4 Vesta.[5]
This comet should not be confused with Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9 (D/1993 F2) which spectacularly crashed into Jupiter in 1994.
References
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- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
External links
- Orbital simulation from JPL (Java) / Horizons Ephemeris
- 118P magnitude plot for 2010
- http://jcometobs.web.fc2.com/pcmtn/0118p.htm
- 118P on Kronk's Cometography
Periodic comets (by number) | ||
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Previous 117P/Helin–Roman–Alu |
118P/Shoemaker–Levy | Next 119P/Parker–Hartley |
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