 The comet on 14 December 1947 | |
| Discovery | |
|---|---|
| Discovery date | 8 December 1947 |
| Designations | |
| C/1947 X1, 1947 XII, 1947n | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch | 1947-Dec-19.0 |
| Observation arc | 25 days |
| Number of observations | 11 |
| Aphelion | 1,400 AU |
| Perihelion | 0.110 AU |
| Semi-major axis | 700 AU |
| Eccentricity | 0.99984 |
| Orbital period | 18,500 years |
| Inclination | 138.51° |
| 337.31° | |
| Argument of periapsis | 196.18° |
| Last perihelion | 2 December 1947 |
| Earth MOID | 0.255 AU |
| Comet total magnitude (M1) | 6.0 |
The Southern Comet of 1947 (also known with the designations C/1947 X1, 1947 XII, and 1947n) was a bright comet that became visible in the southern hemisphere in December 1947. At that point it was the brightest comet seen in two decades[2] and is one of the brightest comets seen since 1935, with an estimated maximum apparent magnitude of -3.[3]
- ^ "Small-Body Database Lookup: C/1947 X1-A (Southern comet)". ssd.jpl.nasa.gov. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
- ^ Cunningham, Leland E. (1948). "THE BRIGHT SOUTHERN COMET, 1947 n". Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific. 60 (352): 27–36. ISSN 0004-6280.
- ^ "Brightest comets seen since 1935". www.icq.eps.harvard.edu. Retrieved 17 January 2024.