Kreutz Sungrazers

I have some questions about the Kreutz sungrazer group of comets.

The SOHO and now other dedicated solar observer spacecraft have been
recording small fragments of this group plunging into the sun for years now.

I would assume the average orbit of this group has been analyzed. If you
take the average or median orbit of this debris and compare it to the
earth's orbit does it intersect earth's orbit at any point? If not, how
close does it come to earth's orbit? And what calender month would that
closest approach to earth be in?

The reason I am asking these questions is that the size of the pieces and
frequency of discoveries seems to be increasing and some have hypothesized
that the parent body may be coming back for a perihelion pass soon.

It would be spectacular if the parent body just happened to pass by earth
when earth is in the part of it's orbit closest to the comet.

Thanks in advance if anyone can answer this.

On Dec 16, 4:43*pm, "Bernard Isker" wrote:
I have some questions about the Kreutz sungrazer group of comets.

The SOHO and now other dedicated solar observer spacecraft have been
recording small fragments of this group plunging into the sun for years now.

I would assume the average orbit of this group has been analyzed. If you
take the average or median orbit of this debris and compare it to the
earth's orbit does it intersect earth's orbit at any point? If not, how
close does it come to earth's orbit? And what calender month would that
closest approach to earth be in?

The reason I am asking these questions is that the size of the pieces and
frequency of discoveries seems to be increasing and some have hypothesized
that the parent body may be coming back for a perihelion pass soon.

It would be spectacular if the parent body just happened to pass by earth
when earth is in the part of it's orbit closest to the comet.

Thanks in advance if anyone can answer this.

Wiki gives a fairly thorough explanation...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kreutz_Sungrazers

.... as does SOHO...

http://sungrazer.nrl.navy.mil/index.php?p=sungrazers

.... but neither answers all of your questions.

\Paul A

I found this article to be interesting.

http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/27264/

The article describes observations of a possible very close encounter with
cometary fragments.

That is why I wonder if Kreutz fragments could do the same thing. I imagine
the Kreutz fragments are strung out across the entire very elliptical orbit
of the parent comet with the highest concentration of fragments still near
the parent.

If the parent is coming back in the next few decades as the observations
hint at, then I would expect that the parent would be accompanied by at
least a few large pieces and many, many smaller ones. As the parent comet
approaches I would expect to see a few large pieces like Comet Lovejoy start
to show up ahead of the parent and then the parent and large pieces
following.

If the earth's orbit and the Kreutz pieces intersect then for the period
that the parent and the swam ahead and behind the parent are in earth orbit
vicinity I would hope the earth was not there.


"palsing" wrote in message
...
On Dec 16, 4:43 pm, "Bernard Isker" wrote:
I have some questions about the Kreutz sungrazer group of comets.

The SOHO and now other dedicated solar observer spacecraft have been
recording small fragments of this group plunging into the sun for years
now.

I would assume the average orbit of this group has been analyzed. If you
take the average or median orbit of this debris and compare it to the
earth's orbit does it intersect earth's orbit at any point? If not, how
close does it come to earth's orbit? And what calender month would that
closest approach to earth be in?

The reason I am asking these questions is that the size of the pieces and
frequency of discoveries seems to be increasing and some have hypothesized
that the parent body may be coming back for a perihelion pass soon.

It would be spectacular if the parent body just happened to pass by earth
when earth is in the part of it's orbit closest to the comet.

Thanks in advance if anyone can answer this.

Wiki gives a fairly thorough explanation...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kreutz_Sungrazers

.... as does SOHO...

http://sungrazer.nrl.navy.mil/index.php?p=sungrazers

.... but neither answers all of your questions.

\Paul A