Bennett, Comet (C/1969 Y1)
A long-period comet discovered on December 28, 1969, by the South African amateur astronomer John ("Jack") Bennett (1914-1990). Having reached perihelion on March 20, 1970, it put on a spectacular show throughout April 1970, reaching zero magnitude with a tail up to 30° long. Observations made with the fifth Orbiting Geophysical Observatory showed the head of the comet to be surrounded by a vast hydrogen cloud, spanning some 13 million km in the direction parallel with the tail.
| perihelion |
0.54 AU |
| eccentricity |
0.996 |
| inclination |
90.0° |
| period |
about 1,700 years |
Related category
• COMETS
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