Comet 21P Gioacobini-Zinner and M37 – September 2018

Comet 21P/Giacobini-Zinner Description: Comet Giacobini-Zinner was discovered in December 1900. It has a nucleus about 2 km in diameter and takes 6.6 years to complete its orbit around the Sun. Each time it passes near the Sun, it leaves some debris of ice and rock....

Comet LOVEJOY – December 2013

La comète Lovejoy – décembre 2013 Description: Comet C / 2013 R1 (Lovejoy) was discovered in September 2013 by Terry Lovejoy. It comes from the Oort cloud which is a reservoir of comets on the outskirts of the solar system and has an orbital period of more than...

Phaethon

3200 Phaethon: asteroid or comet? Description: Phaeton is an Apollo-type asteroid because of its orbit. Its most notable feature is that it comes closer to the Sun than any other named asteroid: its perihelion is only 0.14 Astronomical Units (20.9 million km) –...