Hello Adrien,
For dynamically new comets we always meet the main body, however for dynamically older comets, we can also meet fragments separated from main body revolution before. Such fragments usually disintegrate next time they approach to Sun (see example of comet C/1988 A1 Liller and C/1996 Q1 Tabur). For orbital period in tens of thousands years, the distance between main component and fragment can be large, in hundreds years, so we most likely never recorded the main component before. This is most plausible scenario for actual case.
Best regards,
Jakub ?ern?
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Hi all,
Statistical question: given that this (non-sungrazing) comet seems to not be new (barycentric orbital period in the 30~80 thousand years at epoch 1900), i.e. its disintegration could supposingly have happened at any other approach before or after the current one, is this seeming disintegration at this specific approach a statistically unexpectable event (i.e. expectable lifetime / number of known similarly-long-period comets >> orbital period), or is it statistically not unlikely (i.e. expectable lifetime / number... << orbital period) -- and even more, unlikely or not to happen within "modern astronomy" (i.e. expectable lifetime / number... >> or << centuries)?
Thank you in advance for your help.
Adrien
