Great Comet of 1680

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C/1680 V1
au
Eccentricity0.999986[1][2]
Orbital period~10,400 yr[3]
Inclination60.7°
Last perihelionDecember 18, 1680[1][2]
Next perihelionUnknown

C/1680 V1, also called the Great Comet of 1680, Kirch's Comet, and Newton's Comet, was the first comet discovered by telescope. It was discovered by Gottfried Kirch and was one of the brightest comets of the seventeenth century.

Overview

The Great Comet of 1680 over Rotterdam as painted by Lieve Verschuier
The 1680 comet seen from Rotterdam on December 29, 1680 as simulated by Stellarium

The comet was discovered by

billion km) from the Sun.[6]

While the Kirch Comet of 1680–1681 was discovered by – and subsequently named for – Gottfried Kirch, credit must also be given to

Eusebio Kino, the Spanish Jesuit priest who charted the comet's course. During his delayed departure for Mexico, Kino began his observations of the comet in Cádiz in late 1680. Upon his arrival in Mexico City, he published his Exposición astronómica de el cometa (Astronomical Account of the Comet; Mexico City, 1681) in which he presented his findings. Kino's Exposición astronómica is among the earliest scientific treatises published by a European in the New World.[7]

Coquimbo, Chile
:

Friday, November 19th, 1680. This morning about an hour before the day we observed a comet to appear a degree N. from the bright in Libra. The body thereof seemed dull, and its tail extended itself 18 or 20 degrees in length, being of a pale colour and pointing directly N.N.W. Our prisoners hereupon reported to us that the Spaniards had seen very strange sights, both at Lima, the capital city of Peru, Guayaquil, and other places, much about the time of our coming into the South Seas.[8]

Although it was undeniably a

Kepler's laws.[10] John Flamsteed was the first to propose that the two bright comets of 1680–1681 were the same comet, one traveling inbound to the Sun and the other outbound, and Newton originally disputed this. Newton later changed his mind, and then, with Edmond Halley's help, purloined some of Flamsteed's data to verify this was the case without giving Flamsteed credit.[10]

Gallery

  • The comet as it appeared above Beverwijk on 22 December 1680.
    The comet as it appeared above Beverwijk on 22 December 1680.
  • The Great Comet of 1680 over Nuremberg
    The Great Comet of 1680 over Nuremberg
  • Commemorative medal depicting the comet, Hamburg, 1681
    Commemorative medal depicting the comet, Hamburg, 1681
  • "Cometa apparsa in Roma l'Anno 1680". From an issue of Mercure Galant, published in Paris
    "Cometa apparsa in Roma l'Anno 1680". From an issue of Mercure Galant, published in Paris
  • The comet on the background of the signs of the Zodiac in the winter of 1680–1681
    The comet on the background of the signs of the Zodiac in the winter of 1680–1681
  • The orbit of the comet of 1680, fit to a parabola, as shown in Isaac Newton's Principia[3]
    The orbit of the comet of 1680, fit to a parabola, as shown in Isaac Newton's Principia[3]
  • A 1727 chart of the solar system up to the orbit of the planet Saturn, with the track of the 1680 comet, and two others
    A 1727 chart of the solar system up to the orbit of the planet Saturn, with the track of the 1680 comet, and two others
  • Front page of Exposisión astrónomica de el cometa by Eusebio Francisco Kino, 1681
    Front page of Exposisión astrónomica de el cometa by Eusebio Francisco Kino, 1681

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d "JPL Small-Body Database Browser: C/1680 V1" (1681-03-19 last obs (Encke: 125-day data arc)). Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 26 July 2011.
  2. ^ a b c d "JPL Dastcom Comet Orbital Elements". Archived from the original on 6 September 2008. Retrieved 10 February 2010. Num Name ... q ... Tp ... C/1680 V1 (1680 V1) ... 0.00622200 ... 16801218.48760
  3. ^
    Barycenter
    . Ephemeris Type:Elements and Center:@0 (For epoch 1800 orbit period is "PR= 3.8E+06 / 365.25 days" = ~10,400 years)
  4. ISBN 9780387095134
    .
  5. ^ a b Donald Yeomans. "Great Comets in History". Jet Propulsion Laboratory/California Institute of Technology (Solar System Dynamics). Retrieved 1 August 2007.
  6. ^ NASA JPL Horizons ephemeris 2022–2030
  7. OCLC 1730711
    . Reprint 1948.
  8. ISBN 978-0-87380-176-8
    . Retrieved 5 April 2021.
  9. ^ Tony Hoffman. "A SOHO and Sungrazing Comet FAQ". Archived from the original on 5 August 2012. Retrieved 6 February 2006.
  10. ^ a b Jardine, Lisa (15 March 2013). "A Point of View: Crowd-sourcing comets". Magazine. BBC News. Retrieved 20 May 2013.


External links

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