Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics
Scientific paper
May 1984
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1984sao..reptr....w&link_type=abstract
Semiannual Progress Report, 1 Oct. - 31 Mar. 1984 Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, Cambridge, MA.
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
Bursts, Comet Nuclei, Grazing Incidence, Ice, Mathematical Models, Morphology
Scientific paper
The observations of comet P/Holmes 1892III, exhibiting two 8 to 10 magnitude bursts, were carefully analyzed. The phenomena are consistent with the grazing encounter of a small satellite with the nucleus. The grazing encounter produced, besides the first great burst, an active area on the nucleus, which was rotating retrograde with a period of 16.3 hr and inclination nearly 180 deg. After the final encounter, the spin period was essentially unchanged, but two areas became active, separated some 164 deg in longitude on the nucleus. After the first burst the total magnitude fell less than two magnitudes, while the nuclear region remained diffuse or complex, rarely if ever showing a stellar appearance. The fading was much more rapid after the second burst (barely naked eye at maximum) while the nucleus frequently stellar after the first day. It seems reasonable to conclude that the grazing encounter distributed a volume of large chunks in the neighborhood of the nucleus, maintaining activity for weeks.
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