103P/Hartley
Periodic comet with 6 year orbit / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Comet Hartley 2, designated as 103P/Hartley by the Minor Planet Center,[6] is a small periodic comet with an orbital period of 6.48 years.[1] It was discovered by Malcolm Hartley in 1986 at the Schmidt Telescope Unit, Siding Spring Observatory, Australia.[5] Its diameter is estimated to be 1.2 to 1.6 kilometres (0.75 to 0.99 mi).[5][7]
Discovery | |
---|---|
Discovered by | Malcolm Hartley |
Discovery date | 15 March 1986 |
Designations | |
103P/1986 E2 | |
Orbital characteristics | |
Epoch | 2023-10-23[1] |
Aphelion | 5.89 AU (Q) |
Perihelion | 1.06 AU (q) |
Semi-major axis | 3.48 AU (a) |
Eccentricity | 0.694 |
Orbital period | 6.48 years |
Inclination | 13.61° |
Last perihelion | 20 April 2017[2][3] 28 October 2010[2] |
Next perihelion | 2023-Oct-12[1] 2030-Apr-05[4] |
Earth MOID | 0.072 AU (10,800,000 km)[5] |
Hartley 2 was the target of a flyby of the Deep Impact spacecraft, as part of the EPOXI mission, on 4 November 2010,[8] which was able to approach within 700 kilometers (430 mi) of Hartley 2 as part of its extended mission.[9] As of November 2010[update] Hartley 2 is the smallest comet which has been visited.[10] It is the fifth comet visited by spacecraft, and the second comet visited by the Deep Impact spacecraft, which first visited comet Tempel 1 on 4 July 2005.[11]