Comet Orbits: Prediction, Nongravitational Effects

Abstract

The problems of calculating cometary orbits are discussed, with particular attention to that of predicting the returns of periodic comets. It is shown that the only inherent difficulty arises from the action of nongravitational forces. Recent progress toward an understanding of these forces is described in detail, both from the point of view of fitting the observations and of interpreting the forces in terms of the Whipple icy-conglomerate model.