X/1872 X1

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X/1872 X1
Discovery
Discovered by N. R. Pogson
Discovery date 3 December 1872
Alternative
designations 		"Pogson's Comet"
Orbital characteristics A
Perihelion 0.0637 AU [1]
Eccentricity 1.0
Inclination 148.44°
Last perihelion 16 December 1872

X/1872 X1, occasionally referred to as "Pogson's Comet", was a probable cometary astronomical object seen from Madras (now Chennai) on December 3 and 4, 1872, by astronomer N. R. Pogson.

Comet Icy small Solar System body

A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that, when passing close to the Sun, warms and begins to release gases, a process called outgassing. This produces a visible atmosphere or coma, and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena are due to the effects of solar radiation and the solar wind acting upon the nucleus of the comet. Comet nuclei range from a few hundred metres to tens of kilometres across and are composed of loose collections of ice, dust, and small rocky particles. The coma may be up to 15 times the Earth's diameter, while the tail may stretch one astronomical unit. If sufficiently bright, a comet may be seen from the Earth without the aid of a telescope and may subtend an arc of 30° across the sky. Comets have been observed and recorded since ancient times by many cultures.

Chennai Megacity in Tamil Nadu, India

Chennai is the capital of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal, it is the biggest cultural, economic and educational centre of south India. According to the 2011 Indian census, it is the sixth most populous city and fourth-most populous urban agglomeration in India. The city together with the adjoining regions constitute the Chennai Metropolitan Area, which is the 36th-largest urban area by population in the world. Chennai is among the most visited Indian cities by foreign tourists. It was ranked the 43rd most visited city in the world for the year 2015. The Quality of Living Survey rated Chennai as the safest city in India. Chennai attracts 45 percent of health tourists visiting India, and 30 to 40 percent of domestic health tourists. As such, it is termed "India's health capital". As a growing metropolitan city in a developing country, Chennai confronts substantial pollution and other logistical and socio-economic problems.

N. R. Pogson British astronomer

Norman Robert Pogson, CIE was an English astronomer who worked in India at the Madras observatory. He discovered several minor planets and made observations on comets. He introduced a mathematical scale of stellar magnitudes with the ratio of two successive magnitudes being the fifth root of one hundred (~2.512) and referred to as Pogson's ratio.

Contents

Pogson believed the object to be the lost Comet Biela, but subsequent orbital calculations have suggested that this was unlikely. [2] Neither Biela's Comet nor Pogson's object have been recovered since, and the episode remains one of the most puzzling in solar system astronomy.

Astronomy natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects

Astronomy is a natural science that studies celestial objects and phenomena. It applies mathematics, physics, and chemistry in an effort to explain the origin of those objects and phenomena and their evolution. Objects of interest include planets, moons, stars, nebulae, galaxies, and comets; the phenomena also includes supernova explosions, gamma ray bursts, quasars, blazars, pulsars, and cosmic microwave background radiation. More generally, all phenomena that originate outside Earth's atmosphere are within the purview of astronomy. A related but distinct subject is physical cosmology, which is the study of the Universe as a whole.

Discovery

Pogson's observations were triggered by a great meteor shower (later known as the Andromedids) seen on November 27, 1872: its radiant was observed to be located in a part of the sky which Biela's Comet, last seen in 1852, had been predicted to cross in September, and it was speculated that it might be associated with the comet. As a result, the astronomer Ernst Friedrich Wilhelm Klinkerfues sent a telegram to Pogson, at the Madras Observatory, stating that "Biela touched Earth on 27th: search near Theta Centauri". [2] [3]

Meteor shower celestial event

A meteor shower is a celestial event in which a number of meteors are observed to radiate, or originate, from one point in the night sky. These meteors are caused by streams of cosmic debris called meteoroids entering Earth's atmosphere at extremely high speeds on parallel trajectories. Most meteors are smaller than a grain of sand, so almost all of them disintegrate and never hit the Earth's surface. Very intense or unusual meteor showers are known as meteor outbursts and meteor storms, which produce at least 1,000 meteors an hour, most notably from the Leonids. The Meteor Data Centre lists over 900 suspected meteor showers of which about 100 are well established. Several organizations point to viewing opportunities on the Internet.

Andromedids meteor shower

The Andromedids meteor shower is associated with Biela's Comet, the showers occurring as Earth passes through old streams left by the comet's tail. The comet was observed to have broken up by 1846; further drift of the pieces by 1852 suggested the moment of breakup was in either 1842 or early 1843, when the comet was near Jupiter. The breakup led to particularly spectacular showers in subsequent cycles.

Pogson began searching for the comet at around 4 a.m. local time on the 3rd, after cloudy weather had hampered observations for two nights. The clouds broke up for a period of around ten minutes, and at 05.15 he spotted an object, "evidently cometary at the first glance", [3] which he recorded as "circular, bright, with a decided nucleus": he identified it to his satisfaction as Biela's Comet by comparing its rate of motion against background stars. [2] On the following morning he made further observations under better conditions, stating that the apparent comet now had a short tail. The morning of the 5th was cloudy, and Pogson immediately dispatched several letters noting his observations and giving three detailed positions, although admitting he had failed to spot the second of the two cometary heads seen on the previous observed return of Comet Biela.

Analysis

Primary and secondary components of Biela's Comet, drawn by Secchi on its final observed return in 1852. Pogson's object was initially thought to be a recovery of Biela. Biela1852.jpg
Primary and secondary components of Biela's Comet, drawn by Secchi on its final observed return in 1852. Pogson's object was initially thought to be a recovery of Biela.

Pogson's observation quickly attracted academic attention. The amateur astronomer Lt-Col. George Lyon Tupman, writing in the January 1873 Monthly Notices, noted problems with both the positions of Pogson's "comet" compared to that of Biela and the 12-week difference between Pogson's observations and the projected orbit of Biela: however, he conceded that the difference in inclination could be explained if Pogson had seen the secondary comet of Biela on the 3rd and the primary on the 4th. [2]

A number of orbits were subsequently published for Pogson's object by Karl Bruhns (1875) and Heinrich Kreutz (1886 and 1902), but being based on only three positions are rather speculative. [4] If the object seen by Pogson was a comet, it has not been detected since.

Heinrich Kreutz German astronomer

Heinrich Carl Friedrich Kreutz was a German astronomer, most notable for his studies of the orbits of several sungrazing comets, which revealed that they were all related objects, produced when a very large sun-grazing comet fragmented several hundred years previously. The group is now known as the Kreutz Sungrazers, and has produced some of the brightest comets ever seen.

The Irish astronomer William Henry Stanley Monck was later to suggest that "the comets of Pogson and Biela may belong to the same family and may co-operate in producing the same diffused meteor shower". [5] He was also to suggest that a possible comet seen by James Buckingham on November 9, 1865 [6] might have been the same object as that seen by Pogson, and suggested an 1893 return, which did not occur. [4]

Patrick Moore was later to comment of Pogson's observations that "[he] was a highly experienced observer [...] so there seems little room for error. On the other hand, it is inconceivable that the comet was Biela's; it must have been another, quite unconnected, merely happening to lie in the same region of the sky – an almost incredible coincidence." [7] The writer Amédée Guillemin described this coincidence as "a very striking, I might almost say, romantic episode in astronomical history". [8]

As Pogson was the only observer, Marsden's catalogues (1979, 1982) do not list the object, although Kronk (2003) includes it.

See also

Related Research Articles

Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9 was a comet that broke apart in July 1992 and collided with Jupiter in July 1994, providing the first direct observation of an extraterrestrial collision of Solar System objects. This generated a large amount of coverage in the popular media, and the comet was closely observed by astronomers worldwide. The collision provided new information about Jupiter and highlighted its possible role in reducing space debris in the inner Solar System.

Halleys Comet comet

Halley's Comet or Comet Halley, officially designated 1P/Halley, is a short-period comet visible from Earth every 75–76 years. Halley is the only known short-period comet that is regularly visible to the naked eye from Earth, and the only naked-eye comet that might appear twice in a human lifetime. Halley last appeared in the inner parts of the Solar System in 1986 and will next appear in mid-2061.

Comet Encke periodic comet

Comet Encke or Encke's Comet is a periodic comet that completes an orbit of the Sun once every 3.3 years. Encke was first recorded by Pierre Méchain in 1786, but it was not recognized as a periodic comet until 1819 when its orbit was computed by Johann Franz Encke; like Halley's Comet, it is unusual in being named after the calculator of its orbit rather than its discoverer. Like most comets, it has a very low albedo, reflecting only 4.6% of the light it receives. The diameter of the nucleus of Encke's Comet is 4.8 km.

12P/Pons–Brooks is a periodic comet with an orbital period of 71 years. It fits the classical definition of a Halley-type comet with. Its next closest approach to Earth is in 2024.

Bielas Comet comet

Biela's Comet or Comet Biela was a periodic Jupiter-family comet first recorded in 1772 by Montaigne and Messier and finally identified as periodic in 1826 by Wilhelm von Biela. It was subsequently observed to split in two and has not been seen since 1852. As a result, it is currently considered to have been destroyed, although remnants appeared to have survived for some time as a meteor shower, the Andromedids.

Sungrazing comet comet that is extremely close to the sun during part of its orbit

A sungrazing comet is a comet that passes extremely close to the Sun at perihelion – sometimes within a few thousand kilometres of the Sun's surface. Although small sungrazers can completely evaporate during such a close approach to the Sun, larger sungrazers can survive many perihelion passages. However, the strong evaporation and tidal forces they experience often lead to their fragmentation.

Great Comet of 1882 astronomical object

The Great Comet of 1882 formally designated C/1882 R1, 1882 II, and 1882b, was a comet which became very bright in September 1882. It was a member of the Kreutz Sungrazers, a family of comets which pass within 1 R☉ of the Sun's photosphere at perihelion. The comet was bright enough to be visible next to the Sun in the daytime sky at its perihelion.

The Kreutz sungrazers are a family of sungrazing comets, characterized by orbits taking them extremely close to the Sun at perihelion. They are believed to be fragments of one large comet that broke up several centuries ago and are named for German astronomer Heinrich Kreutz, who first demonstrated that they were related. A Kreutz sungrazers's aphelion is about 170 AU from the Sun; these sungrazers make their way from the distant outer Solar System from a patch in the sky in Canis Major, to the inner Solar System, to their perihelion point near the Sun, and then leave the inner Solar System in their return trip to their aphelion.

The Comet of 1729, also known as C/1729 P1 or Comet Sarabat, was a non-periodic comet with an absolute magnitude of −3, the brightest ever observed for a comet; it is therefore considered to be potentially the largest comet ever seen.

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.

D/1770 L1, popularly known as Lexell's Comet after its orbit computer Anders Johan Lexell, was a comet discovered by astronomer Charles Messier in June 1770. It is notable for having passed closer to Earth than any other comet in recorded history, approaching to a distance of only 0.015 astronomical units. The comet has not been seen since 1770 and is considered a lost comet.

Great Southern Comet of 1887

The Great Southern Comet of 1887, or C/1887 B1 using its International Astronomical Union (IAU) designation, was a bright comet seen from the Southern Hemisphere during January 1887. Later calculations indicated it to be part of the Kreutz Sungrazing group.

Comet Swift–Tuttle comet

Comet Swift–Tuttle is a periodic comet with a current (osculating) orbital period of 133 years. It fits the classical definition of a Halley-type comet with a period between 20 and 200 years. It was independently discovered by Lewis Swift on July 16, 1862 and by Horace Parnell Tuttle on July 19, 1862. It has a well determined orbit and has a comet nucleus 26 km in diameter.

Comet ISON comet discovered in 2012, with a close approach to Earth in December 2013

Comet ISON, formally known as C/2012 S1, was a sungrazing comet discovered on 21 September 2012 by Vitaly Nevsky and Artyom Novichonok. The discovery was made using the 0.4-meter (16 in) reflector of the International Scientific Optical Network (ISON) near Kislovodsk, Russia. Data processing was carried out by automated asteroid-discovery program CoLiTec. Precovery images by the Mount Lemmon Survey from 28 December 2011 and by Pan-STARRS from 28 January 2012 were quickly located. Follow-up observations were made on 22 September by a team from Remanzacco Observatory in Italy using the iTelescope network. The discovery was announced by the Minor Planet Center on 24 September. Observations by Swift in January 2013 suggested that Comet ISON's nucleus was around 5 kilometers (3 mi) in diameter. Later estimates were that the nucleus was only about 2 kilometers (1 mi) in diameter. Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) observations suggested the nucleus was smaller than 0.8 kilometers (0.5 mi) in diameter.

Observational history of comets

Comets have been observed by humanity for thousands of years, but it is only in the past few centuries that they have been studied as astronomical phenomena.

Naming of comets history and current system of naming comets

Comets have been observed for the last 2,000 years. During that time, several different systems have been used to assign names to each comet, and as a result many comets have more than one name.

C/1874 H1

C/1874 H1 (Coggia) is a famous non-periodic comet, which in the summer of 1874 could be seen by naked eye observation. On the basis of its brightness, the comet has been called the Great Comet of 1874; on July 13 the magnitude of the brightness was between 0 and 1.

References

  1. ↑ Kreutz, H. F. C., AJB, 3 (1902), pp.190–1
  2. 1 2 3 4 Kronk, G. Cometography: a catalog of comets, Volume 2, Cambridge University Press, 2003, p.388
  3. 1 2 Pogson, N. R. Madras Observations of Biela's Comet, Astronomische Nachrichten, v.84, 12
  4. 1 2 Kronk, p.389
  5. ↑ Monck, W H S. Pogson's Comet and the Bielan Meteors, Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, Vol. 4, No. 21, p.19
  6. ↑ See Buckingham, "Supposed Observation of Biela's Comet", May 4th, 1866, in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society , vols. 25–27, p.271. Buckingham, searching for Biela's Comet using an ephemeris provided by John Russell Hind, described having found "two round vapoury bodies" in approximately the right position; however Hind later communicated to him that he thought the observation might have been of two nebulae.
  7. ↑ Moore, P. Guide to comets, James Clarke, 1977, p.87
  8. ↑ Guillemin, A. The World of Comets, (transl J. Glaisher), Marston, Searle & Rivington, 1877, p.266
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