short-period comet

A comet in an elliptical orbit, with a period of several years or decades, comparable with the orbital periods of the planets. Short-period comets have been perturbed into their present orbits by the gravitational influence of the planets, particularly Jupiter, during close encounters. Two-thirds of all short-period comets are in orbits that extend no more than one astronomical unit beyond the orbit of Jupiter. It is suspected that they originate in the Kuiper Belt.