71P/Clark
 | |
| Discovery | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Michael Clark |
| Discovery date | June 9, 1973 |
| Designations | |
| 1973 V; 1978 XXIII; 1984 VIII; 1989 XX; 1994t | |
| Orbital characteristics | |
| Epoch | March 6, 2006 |
| Aphelion | 4.685 AU |
| Perihelion | 1.562 AU |
| Semi-major axis | 3.124 AU |
| Eccentricity | 0.4999 |
| Orbital period | 5.521 a |
| Inclination | 9.4883° |
| Last perihelion | 2023-Jan-21[1] June 30, 2017[2] December 15, 2011 |
| Next perihelion | 2028-Sep-28[3] |
71P/Clark is a periodic comet in the Solar System with an orbital period of 5.5 years.
It was discovered by Michael Clark at Mount John University Observatory, New Zealand on 9 June 1973 with a brightness of apparent magnitude 13. Subsequently it has been observed in 1978, 1984, 1989, 1995, 2000, 2006, 2011[4] and 2017.[5]
The nucleus of the comet has a radius of 0.68 ± 0.04 kilometers, assuming a geometric albedo of 0.04, based on observations by Hubble Space Telescope,[6] while observations by Keck indicate a radius of 1.305 km.[7]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ MPC
- ^ Syuichi Nakano (2011-02-06). "71P/Clark (NK 2030)". OAA Computing and Minor Planet Sections. Retrieved 2012-02-18.
- ^ "Horizons Batch for 71P/Clark (90000724) on 2028-Sep-28" (Perihelion occurs when rdot flips from negative to positive). JPL Horizons. Retrieved 2023-07-06. (Soln.date: 2023-Jul-05)
- ^ "71P/Clark". Cometography. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
- ^ "APOD 2017, May 27 - Comet Clark is near the Edge". Retrieved 27 May 2017.
- ^ Lamy, P. L.; Toth, I.; Weaver, H. A.; A'Hearn, M. F.; Jorda, L. (December 2009). "Properties of the nuclei and comae of 13 ecliptic comets from Hubble Space Telescope snapshot observations". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 508 (2): 1045–1056. Bibcode:2009A&A...508.1045L. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/200811462. S2CID 125249770.
- ^ Meech, K.J.; Hainaut, O.R.; Marsden, B.G. (August 2004). "Comet nucleus size distributions from HST and Keck telescopes". Icarus. 170 (2): 463–491. Bibcode:2004Icar..170..463M. doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2004.03.014.
External links
[edit]- Orbital simulation from JPL (Java) / Horizons Ephemeris
- 71P/Clark – Seiichi Yoshida @ aerith.net
 | This comet-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |