The Latest on Comet Elenin

Fresh from the press, comes the relief we have been waiting for for all these months: Comet Elenin poses NO threat towards earth. According to recent statistics, this comet (astronomically labeled C/2010 X1) will pass approximately 35 million kilometers away from earth during its closest approach on October 16, 2011. This is 22 million miles, or about 90 times the distance from the earth and moon. From Matthew Winter's C/2010 X1 [Comet Elenin], he writes on the discovery of this object:

"Discovered by an amateur astronomer December 10, 2010, C/2010 X1, or ‘Comet Elenin’ put real fear into millions of people globally. The reason? Elenin means ‘doomsday,’ or in other words: ‘the end of the world.’ For those who are uneducated on the subject, Comet Elenin just means trouble, and the media did a great job on convincing them. “It is called Elenin since it was discovered by Leonid Elenin. I expect the internet to soon be ringing with rumors and news bytes about this comet,” writes Scott.net contributor Laura Knight-Jadczyk. One thing so far can easily be decided over: the internet is flowing over with rumors and false truths about the dangers of Elenin. In an interview with Leonid Elenin, discover of C/2010 X1, entitled ‘Comets May Pose a Serious Threat,’ Elenin responds to a question, “It’s a great question, and I will not develop it further in this interview, just let me note that the comet might pose to the Earth's major threat, especially the large long-period comets that are unknown at this time.” That was enough to put fear into the selves of many; this article was originally written in Russian, published in Russian newspaper, and read by thousands."

At the time Leonid Elenin discovered the object, the comet was about 401 million miles away from the sun, and is moving faster by the day. But, will this have an affect on our planet? "Comet Elenin will not only be far away, it is also on the small side for comets," said Don Yeomans, a scientist at NASA. "And comets are not the most densely-packed objects out there. They usually have the density of something akin to loosely packed icy dirt. So you've got a modest-sized icy dirtball that is getting no closer than 35 million kilometers (about 22 million miles). It will have an immeasurably minuscule influence on our planet. By comparison, my subcompact automobile exerts a greater influence on the ocean's tides than comet Elenin ever will."

Also, have you heard about Comet Honda? If you have, you'll notice how complicated this Elenin business really is. Here is something about this comet on Elenin's site:

Amidst the ongoing controversy over the little known Comet Elenin, a more likely suspect for an ELE (Extinction Level Event) has been left relatively untouched Comet 45 P’Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova is projected to reach aphelion (closest orbital distance to earth) in mid-August 2011, with an estimated proximity to earth of 0.06 A.U (astronomical unit). or approximately 9 million kilometers, the closest since comet D/i770 Li (Lexell) in 1770 and C/i983 Hi (IIt4S-Araki-Alcock) in 1983. 

The 45 Honda was first discovered on December 3 1948 by Minoru Honda, an amateur astronomer from Japan. The 45 Honda is believed to have a diameter of 1.61 cm, which is significantly larger than both Lexell and IRAS-Aralci-Alcock. It follows an elliptical, five and a quarter years orbit around our Sun commencing from the Ophiuchus constellation at the Galactic Equator. The 45 Honda has a perihelion (closest orbital distance to the Sun) of 0.58 A.U, which will occur on September 30 this year.

If you would like to read more about elenin, try this link, and you'll get a plethora of pages. Comet Elenin HOME