彗星的CCD成像观测

近年来，对一系列彗星进行的宽带或带ＣＣＤ测光得到了许多有趣的结果，为深入地理解彗星的物理性质，结构，起源和演化等提供了丰富的信息。文中简要地介绍了利用ＣＣＤ成像观测在测量彗核的自转，大小，开头，质量和研究彗核的活动以及彗发的形成和演化等方面的进展。     

海尔—波普彗星的位置与我们的观测策略

根据星历表，本文绘出运行轨道图，分析了百武彗星与海尔－波普彗星的不同，讨论了对后者观测应当考虑的一些问题。     

彗木相撞中的波动

1994年7月18日至24日期间，彗星苏梅克-列维9(SL-9)的超过20块碎片与木星发生了相撞．哈勃空间望远镜(HST)拍摄到的图像揭示了木星大气对撞击的动力学响应．具有重要意义的是观测到5个撞击点周围的圆环，它们以450米／秒的常速度向外运动．环的圆形性表明它们是波．因为对于不同大小的撞击，波速是常量，可以推断出传播速度与爆炸能量无关．这意味着这些波动是线性波．评述现行理论所使用的3类候选波，亦即惯性引力波、声波和地震波，介绍的重点是前面两种．     

彗木碰撞期间3.6和12cm射电观测

本介绍了１９９４年７月ＳＬ－９彗星撞击木星期间３．６ｃｍ和１２ｃｍ射电连续谱观测的结果。在３．６ｃｍ波长上，撞击事件无明显的视效应，在１２ｃｍ波长上，木星的射电平均视流量增加约２０％。     

1994年4月的SL9彗星观测

１９９４年４月１２日晨，我们对Ｓ９彗星进行了成功的观测．观测使用云南天文台一米望远镜和加了缩焦器的Ⅱ号ＣＣＤ系统．照相机像素为５１２×５１２，视场约７’×７’．在近两小时的不同时刻的四张照片中，观测到了彗星２１颗碎核中的主要部份及其运动．本文介绍了此次观测情况和资料处理，并给出对ＳＬ９各彗核的位置和亮度的测量结果．     

海尔—波普彗星1996年春观测

1996年2月底至3月初，海尔-波普彗星在清晨前重新出现，地平高度较低．本文使用云南天文台1米望远镜加新研制的1024×1024CCD照像机，对该彗星进行了照像观测，精密测定了其位置及光度．结果表明，即使与最新的预报比较起来，仍旧存在着明显的系统偏差．因此，海尔一波普彗星的轨道根数仍需修正．其亮度也比最新的预报稍亮．     

海尔—波普彗星喷流的一次成功检测

上海天文台余山观测站1．56m望远镜于1996年9月23日北京时间19点40分拍摄了海尔-波普彗星的CCD图象。使用的滤光片是R，露光时间为45s。经过偏流（bias）、暗流（dark）以及平场（flat）改正的图象上可以看出彗核附近有5条喷流，但是并不十分清楚（见图1）。这主要是由于喷流叠     

海尔—波普彗星的一个可能的巨大等离子体喷流

１９９６年９月１１日，使用上海天台１．５６ｍ望远镜和Ｓｅｒｉｓ２００ＣＣＤ照相机，在Ｂ波段发现海尔－波普彗星有一个巨大的喷流，初步认定为等离子喷流。     

彗木碰撞期间3.6和12cm射电观测

本文介绍了1994年7月SL－9彗星撞击木星期间3．6cm和12cm射电连续谱观测的结果．在3．6cm波长上，撞击事件无明显的视效应，在12cm波长上，木星的射电平均视流量增加约20％．     

中国古代彗星记录的证认

对中国古代彗星记录的研究状况进行了全面论述,讨论了古代彗星名称、记录和轨道的确定,以事实说明,据这些彗星记录不可能得垤精确的轨道;回顾了古代彗星证认的历史发展,着重分析进行短周期彗得证认时可能出现的问题和解决方法;总结了古代彗星证认的意义：一是有助于短周期彗星长期演化的研究,二是有助于历史年代的确定。     

The stability of the cometary plasma tail and rays

The stability of both the main cometary plasma tail and the tail rays is considered, taking into account the coupling between the plasma and the neutrals that flow out radially from the nucleus. It is shown that this coupling has a negligible effect on wave damping. Rather, we found that the neutral wind tends to destabilize the flanks of the main tail. On the other hand, the cometary rays are subject to both stabilizing and destabilizing effects because of the ion-neutrals drag. As a result, helical perturbations should become azimuthally asymmetric. Our study predicts that the folding rays may become wavy while approaching the tail axis, whereas they should remain straight far away from the tail axis.     

A short wavelength instability in the neutral sheet of the earth's geomagnetic tail

In an earlier paper, Bowers (1973), ion plasma oscillations were found to be unstable in the steady state developed by Cowley (1972) for the neutral sheet in the Earth's geomagnetic tail. In this paper a similar stability analysis is carried out but for a different steady state, suggested by Dungey, with the result that unstable waves with frequencies near the electron plasma frequency are found. In the Dungey steady state the current necessary for magnetic field reversal is carried by plasma originating from both the magnetosheath and the lobes of the tail. This modifies the steady state proposed by Alfvén and subsequently developed by Cowley in which all the current is carried by plasma from the lobes of the tail thereby fixing the cross-tail potential Φ. With magnetosheath plasma present the value of Φ is no longer fixed solely by parameters in the lobes of the tail but the cross-tail electric field is still assumed localised in the dusk region of the sheet as in the Cowley model due to the balance of charge required in the neutral sheet. The value of Φ can be expected to increase as magnetic flux is transported to the tail which inflates and causes flux annihilation because the magneto-sheath plasma in the neutral sheet has insufficient pressure to keep the two lobes of the tail apart. The Vlasov-Maxwell set of equations is perturbed and linearised enabling a critical condition for instability to be found for modes propagating across the tail. Typically, this condition requireseΦ≳KT _m whereT _m is the temperature of magnetosheath electrons. The instability occurs in the presence of cold plasma which hasE×B drifted into the neutral sheet from the lobes of the tail. This contrasts with the usual two stream instability which is stabilised by the cold plasma. Once precipitated the instability may be explosive provided current disruption occurs, for then a further increase in Φ will result which drives a greater range of wave numbers unstable thereby causing even more turbulence and an even larger cross-tail electric field. Because of this behaviour the instability may be a trigger for a substorm.     

Open and closed magnetospheric tail configurations and their stability

The asymptotic theory valid for magnetospheric tail configurations that vary only weakly in the antisolar direction is used to derive a number of explicit properties. The conditions under which the magnetopause converges to form a closed magnetosphere or diverges (open magnetosphere) are identified and discussed. It is shown that the presence of the high latitude low pressure tail lobes guarantees the open solution. The large value of the Mach-number of the unperturbed solar wind is the reason for the slow variation of the plasma and field quantities along the tail. Criteria for (two-dimensional) stability are discussed and it is shown that they can be expressed in terms of simple topological properties of the equilibria. Closed magnetopheres turn out to be stable, open magnetospheres with sufficiently stretched field lines are subject to an instability which — as shown earlier —may be the cause of magnetospheric substorms.     

Instability of the cometary plasma tail—the instability in a plasma sheet

We consider the instability of the cometary plasma tail which is composed of a neutral sheet,two lobes of the ion tail and solar wind.The plasma is assumed to be highly conductive and incompressible.The unstable state yields a magnetic field which is perpendicular to the tail axis.Our result is consistent with findings about plasma from the International Cometary Explorer(ICE).     

Physical characteristics of the plasma tail of comet C/2006 M4 (SWAN)

Wide-angle images with narrow-band filters isolating the radiation of CO⁺ ions and continuum of comet C/2006 M4 (SWAN) were acquired. The brightness distribution in the plasma tail shortly after the outburst of the comet on October 26, 2006, has been derived. The model brightness distribution was calculated, and the parameters of the diffusion model of the plasma tail have been obtained. For the date of observations, the magnetic-field induction in the plasma tail, as well as the lifetime of luminous particles and the lengthwise and transverse diffusion coefficients of ions have been estimated. Possible association between the change in the tail structure and that in the physical parameters along the plasma tail of the comet is discussed.     

Consequences of an isotropic static plasma sheet in models of the geomagnetic tail

The equation of momentum balance and magnetic flux conservation are given for a static tail model with an isotropic plasma sheet. The possibility of magnetic field leakage into the solar wind and across the neutral sheet is allowed. Numerical integrations for a wide variety of adjustable model parameters are presented that give the dependence on distance from Earth of all tail parameters (field strength inside and outside of the plasma sheet, plasma pressure, plasma sheet area, tail radius, and normal field component to the neutral sheet). The model gives good agreement with the observed distance dependence of the tail field strength, and accounts for the scatter in the data in terms of a mixture of the fields inside and outside the plasma sheet in the data averages. However, compared with the present interpretations of the observations the model gives a too large plasma pressure at large distances and a too small normal component to the neutral sheet. The discrepancies imply that plasma flow and/or pressure anisotropy are required for an adequate model.     

哈雷彗星主尾流的研究

哈雷彗星在日彗距较大时出现长而直的主彗尾（尾流），这是很有趣的。尾流一般是指等离子体尾流；但是，当地球接近彗星轨道面时，尘埃尾流可能叠加到主彗尾上。在一般感光波段宽的彗星底片上很难区分这两种尾流。本文选取哈雷彗星在不同日彗距的5条主尾流，作了光度测量和比较分析。得出沿各尾轴及其垂直方向几个截面的亮度分布、亮度半极大全宽、尾轴的视风差角和真风差角及彗尾长度。在所分析的蓝敏底片上，过近日点前的2个尾流肯定是等离子体尾流，而5个尾流的相似性以及其他证据说明它们主要都是等离子体尾流，尘埃彗尾的污染是次要的。     

On the Helical waves in the tail of Comet Morehouse 1908

Helical waves in the tail of Comet Morehouse are studied in the WKB approximation with the plasma non-uniformity along the tail taken into account. A comet tail boundary is considered as a transition layer of thickness d, with the linear velocity profile within it. This approach enables us to set the limits of applicability of the tangential discontinuity model: for wavelengths λ which satisfy the condition $\text{2πd}\text{λ}\text{< 10}{}^{\mathrm{?2}}$ both models are practically coincident. The thickness d of the tail boundary is derived from the observations of the increase of the wave amplitude along the tail axis: d ≈ (15–20) × 10³ km. With such a thickness stability conditions turn out to be marginal. This could explain why helical waves in type-1 comet tails are seen only occasionally and not at all times.     

DE-like event in the plasma tail of comet C/2006 M4 (SWAN)

We investigate a DE-like event of October 27, 2006, in the plasma tail of comet C/2006 M4 (SWAN). A set of phenomena in the comet??s tail after the brightness outburst on October 24.04, 2006, is described. The typical dimensions of the tail structure details that developed as a result of plasma instabilities are found. The velocity and acceleration of the disconnected tail fragment and the beginning time of the event are determined. The likely cause of the DE-like event is the comet??s encounter with a high-speed stream of solar wind.     

Helical waves in type-1 comet tails

Oscillations of type-1 comet tails with plasma compressibility taken into account are studied. A comet tail is treated as a plasma cylinder separated by a tangential discontinuity surface from the solar wind. The dispersion equation obtained in the linear approximation is solved numerically with typical plasma parameters. A sufficient condition for instability of the cylindrical tangential discontinuity in the compressible fluid is obtained. The phase velocity of helical waves is shown to be approximately coincident with Alfvén speed in the tail in the reference system moving with the bulk velocity of the plasma outflow in the tail. The instability growth rate is calculated.This theory is shown to be in good agreement with observations in the tails of Comets Kohoutek, Morehouse and Arend-Roland. Hence we conclude that helical waves observed in type-1 comet tails are produced due to the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability, and the model under consideration is justified. If so, one may estimate comet tail magnetic field from the pressure balance at the tangential discontinuity; it turns out to be of the order of the interplanetary magnetic field.