Between 1949 and 1961 the gravity of planet Jupiter grabbed the comet 147P/Kushida-Muramatsu and held it in orbit. Scientists say that this will happen again within a few decades. So what happened to the comet once it left Jupiter's orbit? "...comet Kushida-Muramatsu eventually escaped Jupiter's gravity. It currently circles the sun in the solar system's asteroid belt, between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter." (http://news.nationalgeographic.com) The comets orbital path around Jupiter The comet orbited the planet twice before being flung out into space. The estimated path of comet Kushida-Muramatsu:  Read more: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/09/090914-jupiter-moon-comet.html |
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