Dynamics of meteor streams

Abstract

The overwhelming majority of meteor streams are generally assumed to be formed due to the decay of comets. The most effective process of the release of solid particles from a cometary nucleus is their ejection by sublimating gases when the comet approaches the Sun. The results of investigation of the Geminids and Quadrantids meteor stream evolution show that under the influence of planetary perturbations, the stream may originally be flat but then thicken depending on the variation range of orbital inclinations. Eventually, due to planetary perturbations, a meteor stream may take such a shape as to cause the start of several active showers at different solar longitudes.