Mother of Dragon comet visible in northern skies UPSC

MOTHER OF DRAGONS

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Picture Courtesy: https://www.unilad.com/news/world-news/mother-of-dragons-how-to-see-592046-20240404

Context: Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks, known as the "Mother of Dragons," provides a rare celestial display in the Northern Hemisphere due to its 71-year orbital period, offering valuable insights into the origins of our solar system and enhancing our understanding of the universe's evolution and Earth's formation.

About the 'Mother of Dragons' comet

Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks, also known as the 'Mother of Dragons' comet. Comets are cosmic leftovers from the formation of our solar system, frozen time capsules composed primarily of ice, dust, and rocky material. These icy remnants from the solar system's infancy hold valuable clues to its origins and evolution.
- Studying their composition and orbital paths allows astronomers to piece together the history of our solar system and potentially gain insights into the formation of other planetary systems.
Classified as a Halley-type comet due to its orbital period of around 71 years, 12P/Pons-Brooks follows a predictable path around the Sun. This designation places it within a group of comets with orbital periods ranging from 20 to 200 years. The most famous member of this group is Halley's Comet, visible every 75 to 76 years.
12P/Pons-Brooks belongs to the Jupiter family comets. This classification refers to a group of comets whose orbits are significantly influenced by the gravitational pull of the giant planet Jupiter.

Comet

●A comet is a small, icy object in our solar system.

●As it approaches the Sun, the ice warms and releases gases (outgassing). This creates a glowing head (coma) around the comet's solid core (nucleus). Sometimes, a tail of gas and dust streams out from the coma, pushed by the Sun's wind.

●Comet nuclei are a mix of ice, dust, and rocky particles, ranging from hundreds of meters to tens of kilometers in size.

●Comets have elliptical orbits, meaning they travel in elongated paths around the Sun. Their orbital periods vary greatly, from a few years to millions of years.

●Based on their origin, they are classified as short-period (Kuiper Belt), long-period (Oort Cloud), or hyperbolic (one-time visitors).

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Comet

PRACTICE QUESTION

Q. In the recent headlines, what does the term "Mother of Dragons" mean?

A) Species of dragon

B) Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks

C) A malware

D) New variant of Covid-19

Answer: B