 Tuttle's Comet and theTriangulum Galaxy photographed fromMount Laguna, California on December 30, 2007 | |
| Discovery | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Horace Parnell Tuttle |
| Discovery date | January 5, 1858 |
| Designations | |
| P/1790 A2; P/1858 A1 P/1871 T1 | |
| 1790 II; 1858 I; 1871 III; 1885 IV; 1899 III; 1912 IV; 1926 IV; 1939 X; 1967 V; 1980 XIII; 1994 XV | |
| Orbital characteristics[3][4] | |
| Epoch | January 21, 2022 (JD 2459600.5) |
| Observation arc | 14.09 years (5,150 days) |
| Number of observations | 316 |
| Aphelion | 10.39 AU |
| Perihelion | 1.026 AU |
| Semi-major axis | 5.707 AU |
| Eccentricity | 0.82023 |
| Orbital period | 13.6 years |
| Inclination | 54.911° |
| 270.20° | |
| Argument of periapsis | 207.49° |
| Mean anomaly | 10.573° |
| Last perihelion | August 27, 2021[1] |
| Next perihelion | April 18, 2035[2] |
| TJupiter | 1.601 |
| EarthMOID | 0.095 AU |
| JupiterMOID | 0.738 AU |
| Physical characteristics[4][5] | |
| Dimensions | 4.5 km (2.8 mi) |
| 11.4 hours | |
| (V–R) =0.53±0.04 | |
| Comet total magnitude (M1) | 14.6 |
8P/Tuttle (also known asTuttle's Comet orComet Tuttle) is aperiodiccomet with a 13.6-year orbit. It fits the classical definition of aJupiter-family comet with anorbital period of less than 20 years, but does not fit the modern definition of (2 <TJupiter< 3).[4] Its lastperihelion passage was 27 August 2021 when it had asolar elongation of 26 degrees at approximatelyapparent magnitude 9.[6] Two weeks later, on September 12, 2021, it was about 1.8 AU (270 million km) from Earth which is about as far from Earth as the comet can get when the comet is near perihelion.
Comet 8P/Tuttle is responsible for theUrsidmeteor shower in late December.[7]
Under dark skies, the comet was a naked-eye object. On December 30, 2007, it was in close conjunction with theTriangulum Galaxy. On January 1, 2008, it passed Earth at a distance of 0.25282 AU (37.821 million km).[4] It was visible telescopically to Southern Hemisphere observers in the constellationEridanus throughout February 2008.
Predictions that the 2007 Ursid meteor shower could have possibly been stronger than usual due to the return of the comet,[8] did not appear to materialize, as counts were in the range of normal distribution.
Radar observations of Comet Tuttle in January 2008 by theArecibo Observatory show it to be acontact binary.[9][10] Thecomet nucleus is estimated at 4.5 km (2.8 mi) in diameter, using the equivalent diameter of a sphere having a volume equal to the sum of a 3 km × 4 km (1.9 mi × 2.5 mi) sphere.[4]
| Numbered comets | ||
|---|---|---|
| Previous 7P/Pons–Winnecke | 8P/Tuttle | Next 9P/Tempel |
2021 in space | ||
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