Origin of short period comets |
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| Authors: | M E Bailey |
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| Institution: | (1) Department of Astronomy, The University, Manchester M13 9PG, England, U.K. |
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| Abstract: | Reasons for interest in the origin of short-period comets and the difficulties of computing their long-term dynamcal evolution are reviewed. The relative advantages of a source region in an extended  inner core of the Oort cloud or a compact comet belt just beyond the planetary system are finely balanced, and it is premature to consider the problem solved. A complication is that some comets belonging to the Jupiter family may be part of a time-dependent system, possibly the remains of a giant comet such as Chiron which could have been part of the system  104 yr ago. The origin of short-period comets plays a pivotal role in many areas of solar system science: planet formation, the source of water (possibly life) on the terrestrial planets, the cratering record on the terrestrial planets and satellites of the outer planets, and the environmental impact posed by massive bodies and their decay products in the Earth's near-space environment. |
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| Keywords: | Short-period comets dynamics Oort cloud giant comets terrestrial catastrophism |
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