Discovery | |
---|---|
Discovered by | Ellen Howell |
Discovery date | August 29, 1981 |
Designations | |
1981 X; 1987 VI; 1993 II | |
Orbital characteristics | |
Epoch | March 6, 2006 |
Aphelion | 4.865 AU |
Perihelion | 1.366 AU |
Semi-major axis | 3.116 AU |
Eccentricity | 0.5615 |
Orbital period | 5.5 yr |
Inclination | 4.3831° |
Last perihelion | 2020-Sep-26 [1] April 6, 2015 [2] [3] |
Next perihelion | 2026-03-18 [1] |
Earth MOID | 0.35 AU (52 million km; 140 LD) |
Jupiter MOID | 0.46 AU (69 million km) |
Physical characteristics | |
Dimensions | 4.4 km [4] |
88P/Howell is a periodic comet with a 5.5 year orbital period. It was discovered on 29 August 1981, by Ellen Howell. [5] In 1975 the comet's perihelion (closest approach to the Sun) was 1.9 AU, [1] but a close approach to Jupiter in 1978 [4] perturbed the perihelion distance closer to the Sun. During the 2009 apparition the comet became as bright as apparent magnitude 8. [2] [6]
It last came to perihelion on 6 April 2015; the next perihelion will be on 26 September 2020. [2] On 14 September 2031 the comet will pass 0.074 AU (11.1 million km ; 6.9 million mi ) from Mars. [4] Between 2000–2050 the closest the comet will come to Earth is 0.76 AU (114 million km; 71 million mi) in June 2042.
In response to New Frontiers program call for Mission 4, a team from Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (JHUAPL) submitted a mission concept proposal called Comet Rendezvous, Sample Acquisition, Investigation, and Return (CORSAIR) that would perform a sample return from comet 88P/Howell. [7] [8]
During the 2020 apparition the comet has brightened to about apparent magnitude 10.7 [6] and should reach magnitude 9. [2]
Comet 4P/Faye is a periodic Jupiter-family comet discovered in November 1843 by Hervé Faye at the Royal Observatory in Paris. Its most recent perihelia were on November 15, 2006; May 29, 2014; and September 8, 2021.
10P/Tempel, also known as Tempel 2, is a periodic Jupiter-family comet with a 5 year orbital period. It was discovered on July 4, 1873 by Wilhelm Tempel. The next perihelion passage is 2 August 2026 when the comet will have a solar elongation of 164 degrees at approximately apparent magnitude 8. Closest approach to Earth will be one day later on 3 August 2026 at a distance of 0.414 AU (61.9 million km).
28P/Neujmin, also known as Neujmin 1, is a large periodic comet in the Solar System. With a perihelion distance of 1.5AU, this comet does not make close approaches to the Earth.
41P/Tuttle–Giacobini–Kresák is a periodic comet in the Solar System. The comet nucleus is estimated to be 1.4 kilometers in diameter.
53P/Van Biesbroeck is a periodic comet 7 km in diameter. Its current orbital period is 12.53 years.
77P/Longmore is a periodic comet in the Solar System, with a period of 6.8 years.
78P/Gehrels, also known as Gehrels 2, is a Jupiter-family periodic comet in the Solar System with a current orbital period of 7.22 years.
6P/d'Arrest is a periodic Jupiter-family comet in the Solar System, orbiting between Mars and Jupiter. It passed 0.15124 AU from the Earth on August 12, 1976. The most recent perihelion passage took place on September 17, 2021, when the comet had a solar elongation of 95 degrees at approximately apparent magnitude of 10.
7P/Pons–Winnecke is a periodic Jupiter-family comet with a six-year orbit. Early calculations for the 1921 apparition suggested that the orbit of the comet might collide with Earth in June, but observations on 10 April ruled out an impact. It made a very close approach to Earth in June 1927. The outward migration of perihelion created impressive meteor showers in 1916, 1921 and 1927.
11P/Tempel–Swift–LINEAR is a periodic Jupiter-family comet in the Solar System.
13P/Olbers is a periodic comet with an orbital period of 69 years. It fits the classical definition of a Halley-type comet with. The comet had last been seen in 1956 and the next perihelion is on 30 June 2024.
Comet Finlay is a periodic comet with an orbital period of 6 years discovered by William Henry Finlay on September 26, 1886. The next perihelion passage is July 13, 2021 when the comet will have a solar elongation of 54 degrees at approximately apparent magnitude 10. It last came to perihelion on December 27, 2014, at around magnitude 10. Of the numbered periodic comets, the orbit of 15P/Finlay has one of the smallest minimum orbit intersection distances with the orbit of Earth (E-MOID). In October 2060 the comet will pass about 5 million km from Earth.
Comet Kopff or 22P/Kopff is a periodic comet in the Solar System. Discovered on August 23, 1906, it was named after August Kopff who discovered the comet. The comet was missed on its November 1912 return, but was recovered on its June 1919 return and has been seen at every apparition since. Close approaches to Jupiter in 1938 and 1943 decreased the perihelion distance and orbital period. 22P/Kopff’s last perihelion passage was 18 March 2022. On 13 July 2028 it will pass 0.353 AU (52.8 million km) from Earth.
23P/Brorsen–Metcalf is a periodic comet with an orbital period of 70 years. It fits the classical definition of a Halley-type comet with. It was first discovered by Theodor Brorsen at the Altona Observatory on July 20, 1847, and again by Kaspar Schweizer (Moscow) on August 11, 1847. It was predicted that it would reappear between 1919 and 1922.
Comet Schaumasse is a periodic comet discovered by Alexandre Schaumasse on 1 December 1911 as 12th magnitude. It next comes to perihelion on 8 January 2026 and should brighten to about magnitude 9.
Comet Crommelin, also known as Comet Pons-Coggia-Winnecke-Forbes, is a periodic comet with an orbital period of almost 28 years. It fits the classical definition of a Halley-type comet with. It is named after the British astronomer Andrew C. D. Crommelin who calculated its orbit in 1930. It is one of only four comets not named after their discoverer(s), the other three being Comets Halley, Encke, and Lexell. It next comes to perihelion around May 27, 2039 when it will be near a maximum near-perihelion distance from Earth.
43P/Wolf–Harrington is a periodic comet discovered on December 22, 1924, by Max Wolf in Heidelberg, Germany. In 2019 it passed within 0.065 AU of Jupiter, which lifted the perihelion point and increased the orbital period to 9 years.
62P/Tsuchinshan, also known as Tsuchinshan 1, is a periodic comet discovered on 1965 January 1 at Purple Mountain Observatory, Nanking. It will next come to perihelion on 25 December 2023 at around apparent magnitude 8, and will be 0.53 AU (79 million km) from Earth and 110 degrees from the Sun.
72P/Denning–Fujikawa is a periodic comet discovered on 4 October 1881 by William Frederick Denning. The comet was not seen at another apparition until recovered by Shigehisa Fujikawa in 1978. From 29 December 1978 until 17 June 2014, the comet was lost. On 17 June 2014 the comet was recovered by Hidetaka Sato at apparent magnitude 16 when it was 50 degrees from the Sun. The comet came to perihelion in June 2023, and will next come to perihelion in May 2032.
104P/Kowal, also known as Kowal 2, is a periodic Jupiter-family comet discovered by Charles T. Kowal in 1979. The orbit was confirmed after new sightings in 1991 and 1998.