Halley's Comet has begun its long trek back toward Earth
- Reference: 1702884490
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2023/12/18/comet_halley_now_officially_on/
- Source link:
For Halley, that point is so far away, it extends past the orbit of Neptune.
The famous comet is slated to sling back by Earth in the year 2061. Its last visit was in 1986, when it was met with much fanfare but disappointed many – its [1]appearance was not the imagined blazing celestial fireball, but more of a dim smudge in the sky that could not be seen with the naked eye.
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But while Halley disappointed, six spacecraft from four space agencies were able to [3]observe its structure.
[4]James Webb, Halley's Comet may be set for cosmic dust-up
[5]Eta Aquariid meteor shower peaks this weekend, and will be one for the ages
[6]That's gotta hurt: NASA suffers attack of the lame Orionids
[7]NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft is returning with its first-ever asteroid sample
Named after its discoverer, astronomer Edmond Halley, 1P/Halley completes an orbit of the Sun roughly every 75 to 79 years. This length of time earns it a designation as a "short-period" comet – which means it orbits the sun in less than 200 years.
Its short period and predictable behavior is what led to its discovery. Prior to Halley, it was not known that comets were on an orbital path that would see them return. The astronomer predicted its reappearance in 1705 based on recorded observations in intervals going back at least 2,000 years.
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A sighting of 1P/Halley was even [10]woven into the Bayeaux Tapestry – the 70-meter cloth that depicts the Battle of Hastings in 1066 and portrays the comet as large and bright.
As 1P/Halley approaches again, the possibility of a crewed mission that visits the comet – the subject of 1986 Sci-Fi classic Heart of Comet – will doubtless be debated.
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Humanity has already landed a bot on a comet - the ESA's Rosetta probe reached 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in 2014 before its Philae lander touched down.
We're quite good at this visiting tiny distant rocks thing now. NASA's OSIRIS-REx even took a sample from asteroid Bennu and [12]returned it to Earth in 2023. Japan's space program has chalked up two asteroid sample return missions. Maybe by 2061 we'll be able to pay the famous comet a visit, too?
Scientists [13]believe Halley has been around at least 16,000 years and has displayed little signs of aging. An average periodic comet completes around 1,000 trips around the Sun, according to NASA.
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There's more to see from Earth that just the comet itself. Every year cometary dust from 1P/Halley creates two meteor showers: the [15]Eta Aquariid meteor shower in May and [16]Orionid in October.
This year's Eta Aquarii was particularly intense – with between 120 and 160 meteors visible per hour. An average meteor shower displays between 50 and 60 per hour. ®
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[1] https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/2146758723984
[2] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2ZYAmVhFYancHB1hCMqoOQwAAAIk&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[3] https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/10.1146/annurev.aa.26.090188.000303
[4] https://www.theregister.com/2022/07/26/james_webb_and_halleys_comet/
[5] https://www.theregister.com/2023/05/05/eta_aquariid_meteor_shower_peaks/
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2015/10/20/orionid_meteor_shower/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2023/09/01/nasas_osirisrex_spacecraft_is_returning/
[8] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44ZYAmVhFYancHB1hCMqoOQwAAAIk&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[9] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33ZYAmVhFYancHB1hCMqoOQwAAAIk&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[10] https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=25336523
[11] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44ZYAmVhFYancHB1hCMqoOQwAAAIk&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2023/09/01/nasas_osirisrex_spacecraft_is_returning/
[13] https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/comets/1p-halley/
[14] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/science&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33ZYAmVhFYancHB1hCMqoOQwAAAIk&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[15] https://www.theregister.com/2023/05/05/eta_aquariid_meteor_shower_peaks/
[16] https://www.theregister.com/2015/10/20/orionid_meteor_shower/
[17] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Disappointing
One of the reasons the last visit was disappointing was that it wasn't just over-hyped -- it was misdirected.
As heralded by the press, we were all waiting for the closest approach, when it was nearest, and, as should have been predicted, opposite to us from the Sun. So the glorious tail was pointing away from you when you finally went out to have a look. Those few, like my dad, who actually went out a month early and looked through binoculars got to see a proper comet-looking comet. He was no astronomer, and didn't predict that it would be boring later on.
Re: Disappointing
I saw it then, and I have every expectation of seeing it again in 2061 if my eyes are still working: I'll be a hundred and one.
Re: Disappointing
Same here.
Missing it once in a lifetime is unfortunate, missing it twice would be careless - though being dead sounds like a reasonable excuse
No mention of Odyssey Three?
For shame.
"Scientists believe Halley has been around at least 16,000 years"
After 16000 years of losing mass to the Sun's stellar wind and energy, I would think that Halley's comet doesn't have much more mass to lose so spectacularly.
Anyone know its mass ? There must be loads of ice on it, but there can't be 16000 more years of ice left. How much longer can it have ?
Re: "Scientists believe Halley has been around at least 16,000 years"
If Halley does the average 1000 orbits, then it's about a quarter of the way through its 76,000 years (assuming all these estimates are correct of course)
Oh the memories ...
Just saw a large shooting star at Géminides (Dec. 15), straight above, always impressive! That next Hailey's pass though I'll be in my mid-nineties and likely in need of some very strong glasses to see it through several layers of wooden planks, and granite (or not?)!
As for the bataille d'Hastings; Ah, the good ol' days! When Guillaume le Conquérant marched his way from Normandie to London to become king of England by Christmas 1066, after the king of Norway's failed attempt at this. Good times (and great view of the comet!)!
Rosetta/Philae
I am pretty sure that the Rosetta/Philae mission landed on a comet - more than once as I recall?
The Philae probe bounced into the shadows, and Rosetta was deorbited onto the surface at the end of the mission to 67-P/Churyumov/Getasimenko