Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics
Scientific paper
Nov 1987
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1987a%26a...187..913d&link_type=abstract
Astronomy and Astrophysics, Vol.187, NO. 1+2/NOV, P. 913, 1987
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
41
Scientific paper
There are 152 known original orbits of comets with a period larger than ten thousand years. Their aphelia are shown here to avoid three zones of the celestial sphere, namely the two galactic polar caps and a strip along the galactic equator. Such an axial symmetry of the aphelia distribution in respect to the plane of the galaxy cannot be explained by the traditional mechanism proposed to bring the Oort cloud comets into visibility - namely perturbations from random stellar passages. It cannot be explained either by any other random mechanism - like the passage of molecular clouds, a more recent variation of the previous idea. Finally, none of the known observational biases could introduce such a specific symmetry with respect to the galaxy. Standing in contrast, the observed symmetry is predicted by the "vertical" galactic tide, namely the differential attraction, on the sun and on each comet of the Oort cloud respectively, that comes from the mass distribution within the thick galactic disk.
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