Swift–Tuttle

Swift–Tuttle — comet, explore its interactive 3D model in Cosmoscope.

Explore Swift–Tuttle in a live 3D Solar System. Follow its calculated motion and inspect real astronomical data, distances and orbital facts.

The parent of the Perseid meteor shower: every August, Earth ploughs through the dust it has shed. At 26 km across it is the largest object known to pass repeatedly this close to Earth’s orbit.

Nucleus

~26 km across

Discovered

1862 — Lewis Swift & Horace Tuttle

Period

133 years

Last perihelion

December 1992

Next perihelion

July 2126

Meteors

Parent of the Perseids every August

Explore Swift–Tuttle in 3D

Cosmoscope places Swift–Tuttle in the Solar System using astronomical ephemeris or orbital elements, updated for the simulation time. Explore its calculated motion, distance and orbital facts in the interactive 3D view. Accuracy depends on the orbital model and its valid time range.