What made comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 so unique?

Calculations showed that its unusual fragmented form was due to a previous closer approach to Jupiter in July 1992. At that time, the orbit of Shoemaker–Levy 9 passed within Jupiter’s Roche limit, and Jupiter’s tidal forces had acted to pull apart the comet….Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9.

Discovery
Inclination	94.2°
Dimensions	1.8 km (1.1 mi)

What happened to the comet Shoemaker-Levy 9?

Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 experienced one of the most spectacular ends that humans ever witnessed. Several months after its discovery, pieces of the comet smashed into the planet Jupiter. The collision produced scars that were visible from Earth.

What were the results of the impacts of the fragments of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 into Jupiter?

The impacts proved to be impressive: The fragments – some 21 in all – plunged into Jupiter’s atmosphere over the course of six days. At impact, they were traveling at a speed of about 37 miles/second (60 km/second), heating the atmosphere to at least 53,000 degrees Fahrenheit or 30,000 degrees Celsius.

Who discovered Shoemaker-Levy 9?

Eugene Merle Shoemaker
David H. LevyCarolyn S. Shoemaker
Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9/Discoverers
Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 was the ninth short-periodic comet discovered by Eugene and Carolyn Shoemaker and David Levy. It was first detected on a photograph taken on the night of March 24, 1993 with the 0.4-meter Schmidt telescope on Palomar Mountain in California.

Why do meteors have a lot of kinetic energy?

Meteors that do not appear to belong to showers are called sporadic. Meteors are the result of the high-velocity collision of meteoroids with Earth’s atmosphere. Even at this velocity, the kinetic energy for a meteoroid of a given mass is about 15 times that produced by an equal mass of chemical explosives such as TNT.

What year was Shoemaker-Levy?

18 years
Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9/Orbital period

What year was Shoemaker Levy?

What was Shoemaker-Levy 9 made of?

Jupiter’s southern hemisphere, showing several dark scars created by collisions of fragments of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9. The image was made by the Hubble Space Telescope on July 22, 1994, the last day of the impacts.

How do you pronounce Encke comet?

Comet Encke /ˈɛŋki/ or Encke’s Comet (official designation: 2P/Encke) is a periodic comet that completes an orbit of the Sun once every 3.3 years.

What was the impact of Shoemaker Levy 9?

Shoemaker-Levy 9 left dark, ringed scars that were eventually erased by Jupiter’s winds. While the impact was dramatic, it was more than a show. It gave scientists an opportunity to gain new insights into Jupiter, Shoemaker-Levy 9 and cosmic collisions in general. Researchers were able to deduce the composition and structure of the comet.

How did Comet Shoemaker Levy 9 get its name?

The comet was thus a serendipitous discovery, but one that quickly overshadowed the results from their main observing program. Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9 was the ninth periodic comet (a comet whose orbital period is 200 years or less) discovered by the Shoemakers and Levy, hence its name.

When was the first impact of the Comet Shoemaker?

The first impact occurred at 20:13 UTC on July 16, 1994, when fragment A of the nucleus entered Jupiter’s southern hemisphere at a speed of about 60 km/s (35 mi/s).

What made comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 so unique? Calculations showed that its unusual fragmented form was due to a previous closer approach to Jupiter in July 1992. At that time, the orbit of Shoemaker–Levy 9 passed within Jupiter’s Roche limit, and Jupiter’s tidal forces had acted to pull apart the comet….Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9. Discovery Inclination 94.2°…