Page 24 - 201311 - The 'X' Chronicles Newspaper - November 2012

Super-comet or Super-Dud? Super-comet or super- dud? We'll see by Alan Boyle A new comet superstar named C/2012 S1 (ISON) is heading for the spotlight starting in November 2013 — but will it perform as some hope it will, or will it be a dud of cosmic proportions? "This is one to watch, definitely," said Karl Battams, a scientist at the Naval Research Laboratory who monitors comets for the NASA-supported Sungrazer Comet Project. "But the astronomy community in general tries not to overhype these things. Potentially it will be amazing. Potentially it will be a huge dud." Comet ISON quickly rose to the top of the charts after its discovery, which was based on imagery collected on Friday by the International Scientific Optical Network's 16- inch (0.4-meter) Santel reflecting telescope in Russia. The comet, which was described in an IAU circular on Monday, takes its common name from the network's acronym. Since the discovery, astronomers have gone back through their files to find "pre-discovery" images and calculate the comet's orbit. That orbit is due to bring Comet ISON incredibly close to the sun — within just 1.1 million miles (1.8 million kilometers) in late November of next year. As a result, current of all stripes will be keeping a watch on Comet crossed the Hyakutake’s tail at a distance of projections suggest it could get very bright. ISON and refining their expectations. "I would more than 500 million kilometers (3.3 AU or How bright? Various estimates have set the imagine that by next summer, we should have a 3×108 mi) from the nucleus, showing that brightest magnitude at -10 to -16. That suggests much better handle on it," Battams said. In the Hyakutake had the longest tail known for a the comet could become brighter than the full meantime, check out the chatter on comet. moon — which led Astronomy Magazine's SpaceWeather.com, the Remanzacco Michael E. Bakich to say it "probably will Observatory's comet blog and the Comets SOME DOOMSDAY become the brightest comet anyone alive has Mailing List. ever seen." PREPPER FACTS Over the next year, you're going to hear Top 10 Facts Surrounfind Comet Elenin Continued from Page 18. a lot of comparisons to stunners of the past, as long ago as the Great Comet of 1680 and as 10: What is a Comet? In ancient history, comets •The U.S. has 8.48 million miles of recent as the Great Comet of 2007. You'll also were traditionally considered to be bad omens. roadway. hear comparisons to past letdowns, ranging They are small Solar System bodies (SSSB) that •Congestion causes an extra 4.8 billion from Comet Kohoutek to Comet Elenin. You will display a visible coma (a thin, fuzzy, hours of travel times on U.S. Highways. may also hear a fresh wave of doomsday talk, temporary atmosphere) when close to the Sun. •In 2008 Americans traveled a total of like the ridiculous rumblings that accompanied The main difference between an asteroid and a 5.5 trillion miles. Elenin's approach. comet is that a comet shows a coma. Asteroids •The computer virus stuxnet has been Don't believe anything you hear about a are also thought to have a different origin from show to be able to unlock computer controlled comet catastrophe — and don't get your hopes comets, having formed inside the orbit of locks in prisons. up just yet for a comet extravaganza. But do Jupiter rather than in the outer Solar System. •Annual flu viruses infect 20% of make plans to keep an eye on the sky in late This gives the orbital history of comets more Americans, hospitalize 200,000, and kill about 2013. importance. 36,000. Battams said a lot depends on Comet The coma of a comet is formed when it •The Spanish flu killed more Americans ISON's composition. "It could turn into a huge passes by the Sun. The coma is generally made in one year than WWI, WWII, the Korean War, letdown if it's a comet that's just too fragile and of ice and dust, and can grow to be incredibly and Vietnam combined. dissipates as it makes its way into the inner solar large. In October 2007, comet 17P/Holmes •Each year, an average of 20,000 system," he told me. That's basically what briefly had a tenuous dust atmosphere larger children under the age of 5 are hospitalized happened to Comet Elenin. Because ISON than the Sun. It has been estimated that roughly because of flu-related complications. appears to be a "new" comet coming in from the one comet is discovered each year that is visible •Researchers estimate that if everyone far-flung Oort cloud, it's tough to predict how to the human eye. In some rare cases, a Great routinely washed their hands, a million deaths a the comet will behave. Comet can form which is brighter than any star year could be prevented. The comet is currently in the in the sky. It has been estimated that one Great •Florida had almost 1.5 billion dollars in constellation Cancer, as indicated in this star Comet will appear every decade. flood damage from 1978 to 2011. chart from Astronomy Magazine. When the •Flash floods are the leading cause of comet hits prime time, a year from now, it The requirements for a Great Comet include a weather related deaths in the United States, at should be heading through the constellation large and active nucleus, a close approach to the almost 200 a year. Virgo and visible from northern latitudes before Sun, and a close approach to the Earth. In 1996, •100 grams of crickets has 562 calories, sunrise. Comet Hyakutake, which had a similar sized 5.5 grams of fat, and 6.7 grams of protein. During the months ahead, astronomers nucleus as Comet Elenin, made an extremely •The End [] close approach to Earth. The Ulysses spacecraft