by kdrake » Sun Feb 02, 2014 11:10 am
Just wondering if anyone over here knows how comet Encke may have gotten into its current orbit. It should have died by loss of its volatiles if has been in this current orbit for long. Was the orbit in the past much larger and more eccentric? Did it get bumped by a close pass to an asteroid or near approach to a planet. Its low inclination now may have been smaller in the past. Just wondering if anyone has seen a study on this comet.