This book concentrates on some of the odd aspects of comets and asteroids. Strange behavior of comets, such as outbursts and schisms, and how asteroids can temporally act as comets are discussed, together with the possible threat of Centaurs-class objects like the Taurid complex.
Recent years have seen the distinction between comets and asteroids become less prominent. Comets in "asteroid" orbits and vice versa have become almost commonplace and a clearer view of the role of small bodies in the formation of the Solar System and their effect on Earth has become apparent. Seargent covers this development in detail by including new data and information from space probes.
| Preface |
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vii | |
| Acknowledgements |
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ix | |
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1 | (42) |
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Piazzi's Moving "Star" ... and Its Many Companions |
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1 | (5) |
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Trojans, Amors, Apollos ... and Other Wandering Asteroids |
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6 | (6) |
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Potentially Dangerous Asteroids (But Not Too Much to Worry About!) |
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12 | (1) |
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Asteroid Families, Groups and Pairs |
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13 | (2) |
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15 | (2) |
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Vesta---The Brightest Asteroid |
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17 | (6) |
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Ceres: Asteroid, Low-Activity Comet or Dwarf Planet (or All Three!)? |
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23 | (5) |
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Far-Flung Mini Planets of the Outer Solar System |
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28 | (5) |
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Mini Lands Beyond Neptune; the Kuiper Belt and Beyond |
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33 | (2) |
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A Weird World Called Sedna |
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35 | (5) |
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40 | (3) |
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2 Weird Objects with Split Personalities |
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43 | (50) |
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Asteroids Behaving Like Comets |
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43 | (5) |
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Comet Elst-Pizarro and Its Relatives |
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48 | (2) |
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Colliding Asteroids and "Temporary Comets" |
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50 | (5) |
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Rotational Instability as a Cause of "Cometary" Activity in Asteroids |
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55 | (5) |
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Tidal Heating and Comet-like Behavior |
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60 | (1) |
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60 | (8) |
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68 | (6) |
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Comets Behaving Like Asteroids |
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74 | (12) |
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86 | (7) |
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3 Comet Oddities: Different Objects Sharing the Same Orbit |
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93 | (34) |
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94 | (7) |
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Sungrazers and Sunskirters |
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101 | (15) |
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The Mysterious Object of 1921: Did It Have a Sibling? |
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116 | (8) |
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The Earth-Grazers of 2016 |
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124 | (3) |
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4 More Comet Oddities: Outbursts, Disruptions and Other Strange Behavior |
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127 | (74) |
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The Weird Tale of Comet Holmes |
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127 | (11) |
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The "Gas Outbursts" of Comet Tuttle-Giacobini-Kresak |
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138 | (3) |
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29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann; A Volcanic Comet? |
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141 | (7) |
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15P/Finlay; A Phoenix Comet? |
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148 | (6) |
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Outbursts of Longer-Period Comets |
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154 | (3) |
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Lopsided Lightcurves, "Tail Flares" and Other Unexpected Behavior |
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157 | (8) |
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Two Long-Period Comets Acting Strangely |
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165 | (3) |
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The Little Comet That Flew to Pieces |
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168 | (3) |
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Comet Landslides and Avalanches |
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171 | (3) |
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174 | (17) |
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191 | (2) |
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193 | (8) |
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5 The Fascinating Taurid Complex |
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201 | (48) |
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Was Encke a "Chimera" Comet? |
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213 | (4) |
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A Second (Related?) Asteroid/Meteor/Comet Complex?! |
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217 | (15) |
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A Very Young Meteorite: Is it a Piece of Comet Encke? |
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232 | (4) |
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Fireball Concentrations Within the Taurid Complex |
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236 | (2) |
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An Oort-Cloud Comet Invades the Taurid Complex? |
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238 | (2) |
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Comet Encke in Ancient Times |
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240 | (2) |
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Some Unusual Events and the Taurid Complex: Is There a Connection? |
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242 | (7) |
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249 | (10) |
| Appendix A |
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259 | (4) |
| Appendix B |
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263 | (2) |
| Glossary |
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265 | (6) |
| Author Index |
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271 | (4) |
| Subject Index |
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275 | |
David A. J. Seargent holds an MA and Ph.D., both in Philosophy from the University of Newcastle NSW, where he formerly worked as a tutor in Philosophy for the Department of Community of Programs/Workers Educational Association external education program. As an amateur astronomer, he is known for his observations of comets, one of which he discovered in 1978. He is the author of six astronomy books: Comets Vagabonds in Space (Doubleday, 1982), The Greatest Comets in History (Springer, 2008), Weird Astronomy (Springer, 2010), Weird Weather (Springer, 2012), "Weird Worlds" (Springer, 2013), and most recently "Weird Universe" (Springer, 2015). He is the author of a regular column in Australian Sky and Telescope magazine.
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