63P/Wild is a periodic comet in the Solar System with a current orbital period of 13.21 years.
Observational history
It was first detected by Paul Wild at the Zimmerwald Observatory of the Astronomical Institute of Bern, Switzerland on a photographic plate exposed on 26 March 1960, who estimated its brightness at a magnitude of 14.3. Its elliptical orbit was then calculated to have an orbital period of 13.17 years.[4]
Its predicted reappearance in 1973 was observed by Elizabeth Roemer of the U.S. Naval Observatory, Flagstaff, Arizona at a magnitude of 17.5. Although not found in 1986 it was rediscovered in 1999 with a magnitude of around 12. The 2013 return was moderately favourable with magnitude again around 12.
The nucleus of the comet has a radius of 2.9 km (1.8 mi), assuming a geometric albedo of 0.04.[5]
See also
References
- ^ J. M. Vinter Hansen (8 April 1960). "Comet Wild (1960b)". Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams. 1719.
- ^ "Comet Names and Designations". International Comet Quarterly. Retrieved 31 December 2024.
- ^ "63P/Wild – JPL Small-Body Database Lookup". ssd.jpl.nasa.gov. Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 31 December 2024.
- ^ G. W. Kronk. "63P/Wild 1". Cometography.com. Retrieved 10 December 2014.
- ^ P. L. Lamy; I. Toth; H. A. Weaver; M. F. A'Hearn; L. Jorda (2009). "Properties of the nuclei and comae of 13 ecliptic comets from Hubble Space Telescope snapshot observations" (PDF). Astronomy & Astrophysics. 508 (2): 1045–1056. Bibcode:2009A&A...508.1045L. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/200811462. S2CID 125249770.
External links
- 63P/Wild at the JPL Small-Body Database
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