---
title: "Life Beyond Earth: A day Living on Shoemaker-Levy 9"
description: "Today, I would like to tell you what it would be like to live on my favorite comet, Shoemaker-Levy 9. But I can’t. Not really anyways, because it no longer exists. Well, technically it exists. But now we call it “Jupiter.”   Confused? Let me explain. In 1993, astronomers discovered a comet orbiting Jupiter, and they immediately..."
date: "2013-11-06"
modified: "2013-11-06"
authors:
  - name: "Jolene Creighton"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jolene-creighton"
url: "https://futurism.com/life-beyond-earth-a-day-living-on-shoemaker-levy-9"
categories:
  - "From Quarks to Quasars"
---

# Life Beyond Earth: A day Living on Shoemaker-Levy 9

![](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/jupiter1.jpg>)

[![jupiter](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/jupiter.jpg>)](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/jupiter.jpg>)

Today, I would like to tell you what it would be like to live on my favorite comet, [Shoemaker-Levy 9](<http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=349674405118975&set=a.338057762947306.80189.313312622088487&type=3&theater>). But I can’t. Not really anyways, because it no longer exists. Well, technically it exists. But now we call it “Jupiter.”

Confused? Let me explain. In 1993, astronomers discovered a comet [orbiting ](<http://cse.ssl.berkeley.edu/segwayed/lessons/cometstale/frame_orbits.html>)Jupiter, and they immediately noticed something strange about this comet. First, its orbital period was only about two years. And second, well, it was orbiting Jupiter. Comets’ orbital periods vary wildly; some take a few hundred years, while others (a majority) take a few hundred thousand years. To most of us, a two year orbital period might not seem so peculiar. After all, the Earth’s revolution takes a year, and we aren’t that strange. Right?

Wrong. An overwhelming majority of the objects in our solar system have an orbital period that [takes thousands of years](<http://www.physics.sfasu.edu/astro/sl9/cometfaq.html#Q1.5>). Remember Hale-Bopp? Well, I hope that you have a really long memory because it won’t be back for about 2,500 years. So Shoemaker-Levy 9's two year orbital period is odd. Remarkably odd…especially since its orbit is around a planet, and not the Sun. And you know how people always say that being unique is a good thing? Well, it's not.

Okay, that was a little harsh. I am sure that being unique is—sometimes—a wonderful and glorious thing. But Shoemaker-Levy 9’s uniqueness was of the apocalyptic, doom-inspiring variety. A small comet orbiting very close to a massive object is not really wonderful or glorious. Well, not if you’re the comet anyway. Generally, [when a planet captures a comet the two objects collide](<http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/comet.html>).

In fact, that’s exactly what happened. In July of 1994, Shoemaker-Levy 9 smashed into Jupiter at roughly 216,000 km/h (134,216 mph). The plumes that stretched out of Jupiter after this impact were large enough to completely swallow the Earth.

So I can’t tell you what it would be like to live on my favorite comet. Because Jupiter ate it :c

### Author social links  
[Facebook](<https://www.facebook.com/jolene.creighton>)  
[LinkedIn](<https://www.linkedin.com/in/jolenecreighton>)  
[Twitter](<https://x.com/sciencejolene>)