The peculiar orbit of Comet 1976 I Sato
Abstract
1976 I Sato is considered the most convincing example of a comet which entered the solar system on an hyperbolic orbit from interstellar space. In the present paper it is shown that its observations can be adequately represented by an elliptic orbit coming from the Oort cloud, even without the inclusion of nongravitational accelerations. The new original orbit leaves only 10 to 15 percent larger mean O-C residuals of the positional measurements than the hyperbolic solutions. It is shown that the peculiar observing geometry, appearance, and distribution of observations over the orbital arc have made the hyperbolic excess of the previous orbit determinations much larger than its formal computing uncertainty.
- Publication:
-
Astronomy and Astrophysics
- Pub Date:
- June 1992
- Bibcode:
- 1992A&A...259..692K
- Keywords:
-
- Comet Nuclei;
- Elliptical Orbits;
- Hyperbolic Trajectories;
- Interstellar Space;
- Oort Cloud;
- Orbit Calculation;
- Astronomical Catalogs;
- Light Curve;
- Solar System;
- Astronomy