Episode 160: Quick-Orbiting Comets are Drawing Attention
from Alleen op de wereld by MALOT, Hector
University of Arizona lunar and planetary lab professor Walt Harris is tracking short-period comets as they pass by Earth. They're called Jupiter family comets because Jupiter's gravity twists their path into tighter orbits around the sun, but they'll only come within 10-to-15 million km from Earth. Short-period comets complete their orbits every 6 to 20 years. Some scientists think chemicals from collisions with comets 4 billion years ago were instrumental in developing life on Earth. Walt Harris spoke with Leslie Tolbert, PhD, Regents Professor Emerita in Neuroscience at the University of Arizona.
Embed this episode
No transcript yet.