Misplaced Pages

C/1882 F1 (Wells): Difference between revisions

Article snapshot taken from Wikipedia with creative commons attribution-sharealike license. Give it a read and then ask your questions in the chat. We can research this topic together.
Browse history interactively← Previous editNext edit →Content deleted Content addedVisualWikitext
Revision as of 10:39, 16 December 2024 editKyloRen2017 (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users5,369 edits →See alsoTags: Mobile edit Mobile web edit← Previous edit Revision as of 15:19, 16 December 2024 edit undoCAPTAIN RAJU (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users, Page movers, New page reviewers, Pending changes reviewers, Rollbackers409,739 editsm clean up, typo(s) fixed: On June 1882 → In June 1882Tag: AWBNext edit →
Line 39: Line 39:
The comet was further observed telescopically throughout April 1882 as it gradually approached the ].{{r|sciam1}} It reached naked-eye visibility the following month as it became a 4th-magnitude object, and was briefly thought to be the same comet observed during the ] until later reanalysis revealed it was a different object, now known as ].{{r|cometography}} The comet was further observed telescopically throughout April 1882 as it gradually approached the ].{{r|sciam1}} It reached naked-eye visibility the following month as it became a 4th-magnitude object, and was briefly thought to be the same comet observed during the ] until later reanalysis revealed it was a different object, now known as ].{{r|cometography}}


On June 1882, the comet rapidly brightened as it approached perihelion, increasing its brightness to magnitude 0, and a tail measuring 5 degrees in length.{{r|ICQ2}} However, it never became prominent enough to attract widespread public attention due to it being only briefly observable for brief periods in twilight.{{r|Clerke_2010}} Despite this, several astronomers did manage to see the comet in broad daylight, by this time it has reached its peak magnitude of –6.0, making it one of the brightest comets ever recorded alongside the later ].{{r|Atanackov_2024|ICQ2}} In June 1882, the comet rapidly brightened as it approached perihelion, increasing its brightness to magnitude 0, and a tail measuring 5 degrees in length.{{r|ICQ2}} However, it never became prominent enough to attract widespread public attention due to it being only briefly observable for brief periods in twilight.{{r|Clerke_2010}} Despite this, several astronomers did manage to see the comet in broad daylight, by this time it has reached its peak magnitude of –6.0, making it one of the brightest comets ever recorded alongside the later ].{{r|Atanackov_2024|ICQ2}}


== See also == == See also ==
Line 58: Line 58:
| title= There is a small possibility that in October we may get *two* comets visible in broad daylight. Such comets are rare, with ~10 such known cases in the past 200 yrs. The closest were C/1882 F1 (Wells) & C/1882 R1 (Great September Comet), about 3 months apart. But two in 3 weeks? }} | title= There is a small possibility that in October we may get *two* comets visible in broad daylight. Such comets are rare, with ~10 such known cases in the past 200 yrs. The closest were C/1882 F1 (Wells) & C/1882 R1 (Great September Comet), about 3 months apart. But two in 3 weeks? }}
</ref> </ref>



<ref name="Clerke_2010">{{cite book <ref name="Clerke_2010">{{cite book
Line 76: Line 75:
| website= Cometography.com | website= Cometography.com
| access-date= 5 November 2024 }} | access-date= 5 November 2024 }}
</ref> </ref>


<ref name="ICQ1">{{cite web <ref name="ICQ1">{{cite web

Revision as of 15:19, 16 December 2024

Sungrazing comet
C/1882 F1 (Wells)
Approximate sketches of Comet Wells (1882a) drawn on 15–22 May 1882
Discovery
Discovered byCharles S. Wells
Discovery siteDudley Obs, New York
Discovery date18 March 1882
Designations
Alternative designations1882a
1882 I
Orbital characteristics
Epoch20 June 1882 (JD 2408616.5)
Observation arc114 days
Number of
observations		41
Aphelion17,041 AU
Perihelion0.061 AU
Semi-major axis8,521 AU
Eccentricity0.99999
Orbital period~787,000 years
Max. orbital speed171 km/s
Inclination73.797°
Longitude of
ascending node		206.589°
Argument of
periapsis		208.985°
Last perihelion11 June 1882
TJupiter0.086
Earth MOID0.0084 AU
Jupiter MOID1.3834 AU
Physical characteristics
Apparent magnitude–6.0
(1882 apparition)

Comet Wells, formally designated as C/1882 F1, is a parabolic, sungrazing comet that became visible in the naked eye during the early months of 1882. However, unlike the great comet that appeared later that September, it never became prominent enough to be noticed by the general public due to unfavorable positions in the twilight sky. It is the only comet discovered by American astronomer, Charles S. Wells.

Discovery and observations

The comet was discovered from photographic plates taken by Charles S. Wells on the morning of 18 March 1882, a first for the Dudley Observatory in Albany, New York. The observatory's director, Lewis Boss, described the find as a "small and bright" object in the constellation Hercules.

The comet was further observed telescopically throughout April 1882 as it gradually approached the Earth. It reached naked-eye visibility the following month as it became a 4th-magnitude object, and was briefly thought to be the same comet observed during the total solar eclipse of 17 May 1882 until later reanalysis revealed it was a different object, now known as X/1882 K1 (Tewfik).

In June 1882, the comet rapidly brightened as it approached perihelion, increasing its brightness to magnitude 0, and a tail measuring 5 degrees in length. However, it never became prominent enough to attract widespread public attention due to it being only briefly observable for brief periods in twilight. Despite this, several astronomers did manage to see the comet in broad daylight, by this time it has reached its peak magnitude of –6.0, making it one of the brightest comets ever recorded alongside the later Great Comet of September 1882.

See also

References

Notes

  1. Reported initial position upon discovery was: α = 17 51.7 , δ = 32° 31′

Citations

  1. "Comet Names and Designations". International Comet Quarterly. Retrieved 9 December 2024.
  2. "C/1882 F1 (Wells) – JPL Small-Body Database Lookup". ssd.jpl.nasa.gov. Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 16 December 2024.
  3. ^ J. E. Bortle (1998). "The Bright Comet Chronicles". International Comet Quarterly. Retrieved 16 December 2024.
  4. ^ G. W. Kronk (2003). Cometography: A Catalog of Comets. Vol. 2: 1800–1899. Cambridge University Press. pp. 496–498. ISBN 978-0-521-58505-7.
  5. ^ A. M. Clerke (2010). A Popular History of Astronomy During the Nineteenth Century. Cambridge University Press. pp. 398–400. ISBN 978-1-108-01432-8.
  6. G. Wise (2004). Civic Astronomy: Albany’s Dudley Observatory, 1852–2002. Astrophysics and Space Science Library. Vol. 316. Springer. pp. 69–70. doi:10.1007/978-1-4020-2678-2. ISBN 978-1-402-02678-2.
  7. "Comet a 1882". Scientific American. Vol. 46, no. 15. April 1882. p. 224. doi:10.1038/scientificamerican04151882-224a. JSTOR 26077722.
  8. G. W. Kronk. "X/1882 K1 (Eclipse Comet or "Tewfik")". Cometography.com. Retrieved 5 November 2024.
  9. J. Atanackov (September 30, 2024). "There is a small possibility that in October we may get *two* comets visible in broad daylight. Such comets are rare, with ~10 such known cases in the past 200 yrs. The closest were C/1882 F1 (Wells) & C/1882 R1 (Great September Comet), about 3 months apart. But two in 3 weeks?" (Tweet) – via Twitter.

External links

Comets
Features Comet C/1996 B2 (Hyakutake)
Types
Related
Exploration
Latest
Culture and
speculation
Lists of comets (more)
Periodic
comets
Until 1985
(all)
After 1985
(notable)
Comet-like
asteroids
Lost
Recovered
Destroyed
Not found
Visited by
spacecraft
Near-Parabolic
comets
(notable)
Until 1990
After 1990
After 1910
(by name)
Categories: