Could a comet pass through the zone inside the Roche limit of a planet, but still travel fast enough to leave the zone and continue on a solar oribit into interplanetary space. I imagine that it might get pulled apart a bit and then self graviate back together if it leaves the Roche limit zone soon enough. Or would it become a string of fragments?
Brendan
Comet passing within Roche limit
Brendan,
"Yes."
It does depend on the composition of the comet, how deep it goes into the planet's gravity well, how how long the tidal forces have to act on it, how fast it's rotating, etc.
A mathematical description can be found at http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/physics/RocheLimit.html
Of course, a relatively recent event which demonstrated the effects you're wondering about was Shoemaker-Levy 9's encounter with Jupiter in 1993.
"Yes."
It does depend on the composition of the comet, how deep it goes into the planet's gravity well, how how long the tidal forces have to act on it, how fast it's rotating, etc.
A mathematical description can be found at http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/physics/RocheLimit.html
Of course, a relatively recent event which demonstrated the effects you're wondering about was Shoemaker-Levy 9's encounter with Jupiter in 1993.
Selden