Simulations of the Breakup of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 Employing a Swarm Model: Dynamical Evolution

Visualizations by Kevin Olson Released on March 24, 1995

The breakup of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 due to its gravitational interaction with Jupiter in July, 1994 is simulated using a swarm model. In this simulation, the comet is modeled as an initially spherical distribution of 16,384 particles. The particles interact with the tidal field of Jupiter and with each other through inter-particle gravitation and collisions. All simulations were performed on the Maspar MP-2 at NASA/GSFC.

This animation follows the center of mass of the particles as the clumps form, stopping at several points to rotate and zoom the swarm configuration. The green line connects the center of mass with Jupiter and the box size remains constant at 4 km.

Visualization Credits

Kevin Olson (George Mason University): Lead Animator
Kevin Olson (George Mason University): Scientist
Michael Mumma (NASA/GSFC): Scientist

Please give credit for this item to:
NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center Scientific Visualization Studio

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https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/85

This item is part of this series:
Shoemaker-Levy 9

Keywords:
SVS >> Comet
SVS >> Jupiter
DLESE >> Space science
NASA Science >> Planets and Moons