41P/Tuttle–Giacobini–Kresák
Comet Tuttle–Giacobini–Kresák on March 3, 2017 near Messier 108 and the Owl Nebula. | |
| Discovery | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Horace Parnell Tuttle Michel Giacobini Ľubor Kresák |
| Discovery date | May 3, 1858 |
| Designations | |
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| Orbital characteristics | |
| Epoch | September 13, 2023 (JD 2460200.5) |
| Observation arc | 72.38 years |
| Earliest precovery date | April 26, 1951 |
| Number of observations | 5,250 |
| Aphelion | 5.126 AU |
| Perihelion | 1.051 AU |
| Semi-major axis | 3.088 AU |
| Eccentricity | 0.65981 |
| Orbital period | 5.428 years |
| Inclination | 9.219° |
| 140.99° | |
| Argument of periapsis | 62.227° |
| Mean anomaly | 66.147° |
| Last perihelion | 12 September 2022 |
| Next perihelion | 15 February 2028 |
| TJupiter | 2.827 |
| Earth MOID | 0.134 AU |
| Jupiter MOID | 0.488 AU |
| Physical characteristics | |
Mean radius | 0.44–0.56 km (0.27–0.35 mi) |
| Comet total magnitude (M1) | 16.9 |
41P/Tuttle–Giacobini–Kresák is a Jupiter-family comet with a 5.43-year orbit around the Sun. Observations with the Hubble Space Telescope and dynamical modeling estimate an effective nucleus radius of 440–560 m (1,440–1,840 ft), corresponding to a diameter of roughly 0.88–1.12 km (0.55–0.70 mi), smaller than earlier ground-based estimates.