55P/Tempel-Tuttle

Infobox Comet
name=55P/Tempel-Tuttle


discoverer=Ernst Tempel and Horace Parnell Tuttle
discovery_date=December 19 1865
designations=1366 U1; 1699 U1; 1699 II; 1865 Y1; 1866 I; 1965 M2; 1965 IV; 1965i; 1997 E1
epoch=March 8, 1998 (JD 2450880.5)
semimajor=10.3345 AU
perihelion=0.9766 AU
aphelion=19.6924 AU
eccentricity=0.9055
period=33.2226 a
inclination=162.486°
last_p=February 28, 1998
next_p=May 20, 2031

55P/Tempel-Tuttle (commonly known as Comet Tempel-Tuttle) was independently discovered by Ernst Tempel on December 19 1865 and by Horace Parnell Tuttle on January 6 1866.

It is the parent body of the Leonid meteor shower. In 1699, it was observed by Gottfried Kirch [ [http://cometography.com/pcomets/055p.html C&MS: 55P/Tempel-Tuttle ] ] but was not recognized as a periodic comet until the discoveries by Tempel and Tuttle during the 1866 perihelion.

The orbit of 55P/Tempel-Tuttle intersects that of Earth near exactly, hence streams of material ejected from the comet during perihelion passes do not have to spread out over time to encounter Earth. This coincidence means that streams from the comet are still dense when they encounter Earth, resulting in the 33 year cycle of Leonid meteor storms.

References