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dolphinsny
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A comet near the sun whose orbit is________ would never be near the sun again is called what? My options are elliptical (I know its not this one), circular, hyperbolic, apogee, and following an inverse square law.
HallsofIvy said:"apogee" doesn't apply here. It is a point on an orbit (about the earth, not the sun), not a description of an orbit. And "following an inverse square law" is true of any orbit.
BadBrain said:… a comet or other object that would pass by the sun once and never again is not a satellite of the sun, but a transient object passing through the Solar System …
tiny-tim said:it's perfectly possible for a comet, or even a planet, formerly orbiting the sun, to be involved in a collision, or in a "slingshot" encounter with a large planet, which puts it into an orbit which takes it out of the solar system never to return
BadBrain said:I once knew a guy from online who'd renounced plate tectonics in favor of a "Growing Earth" theory. Part of his theory was that the gigantic reptiles/birds of the dinosaur age were the result of the lesser gravitational pull upon objects at Earth's surface due to the then-smaller diameter of Earth. When I tried to explain to him that a smaller diameter of Earth would have produced a greater, rather than a lesser, gravitational pull upon objects at Earth's surface, he derided me for being so "hung up on that inverse square of the distance thing"!
He did, however, offer no counterargument to that "Newtonian Gravity Equation thing".
He cut off the dialogue with me when I tried to explain that, as there have been supercontinents prior to Pangea, the "Growing Earth" theory is actually the "Oscillating Earth Volume" theory, with no explanation as to the oscillating energy source which would be required to produce this effect.
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Anyways, a comet or other object that would pass by the sun once and never again is not a satellite of the sun, but a transient object passing through the Solar System, as the velocity required to produce this effect would have to be sufficient to allow the object to pass by the sun without deceleration due to the sun's gravitational tug at perihelion reducing the object's velocity below Solar System Escape Velocity, which means the object would escape out into interstellar space. That is, assuming no source of motive energy to the "orbiting" body, as increased orbital amplitude requires an increase in the velocity (read: kinetic energy) of the orbiting body. (And, PLEASE don't argue the thrust effect of sublimating cometary ices, as these are too small to generate perturbations in orbital velocity/amplitude sufficient to change the object's course to the degree necessary to achieve the results of which the original post spoke.)
A comet near the sun is a small celestial body composed of ice, dust, and rock that orbits the sun. When a comet gets close enough to the sun, the heat causes some of its ice to vaporize, creating a tail that can be seen from Earth.
A comet's orbit near the sun is significantly different from its orbit in other parts of the solar system because of the sun's strong gravitational pull. The comet's orbit becomes more elliptical and its speed increases as it approaches the sun. This is what causes the comet's tail to form.
A comet can get as close as 0.01 astronomical units (AU) to the sun before it is completely vaporized by the intense heat and radiation. This distance is equivalent to about 1.5 million kilometers or 930,000 miles.
After a comet passes near the sun, it will either continue on its orbit, or it may break apart due to the sun's strong gravitational forces. If it does not break apart, it will eventually move away from the sun and return to the outer parts of the solar system.
The frequency of comets passing near the sun varies, but on average, several comets pass near the sun each year. However, many of these comets are not visible from Earth because they are too small or do not get close enough to the sun to create a visible tail.