News - October 2000

10/30/2000

Four recent SOHO comets received orbits and a designation. C/2000 U1 (SOHO), C/2000 U2 (SOHO), C/2000 U3 (SOHO) and C/2000 U4 (SOHO) are all members of the Kreutz group of sungrazing comets. (MPEC 2000-U38)

10/27/2000

Michael Oates discovered two further SOHO sungrazers in archival C2 data of Nov. 14, and 15, 1999. (e-mail, Sungrazer Homepage, BAA Comet Section)

10/26/2000

Michael Oates discovered two further SOHO sungrazers: One in real time C2 data of Oct. 25, 2000, and another one in archival C2 data of Nov. 08, 1999. (e-mail, Sungrazer Homepage, BAA Comet Section)

10/24/2000

James Danaher discovered a sungrazer in SOHO/C3 real time images (SOHO-210). Michael Oates found three further archival comets in C2 data of Oct. 27, 29, and 30, 1999. (e-mail, Sungrazer Homepage, BAA Comet Section)

10/22/2000

To make it simple the following list gives an overview of the comet discoveries since the last update:

Two further possible comets have been found in SOHO real time data on Oct. 21, and 22, by Michael Oates (Oct. 21 object) and Michael Boschat and Xavier Leprette (Oct. 22 object). (e-mail, Sungrazer Homepage, BAA Comet Section)
C/1999 U6 (SOHO), C/2000 T1 (SOHO), C/2000 T3 (SOHO), C/2000 T4 (SOHO): Four SOHO comets discovered by Michael Oates (U6), James Danaher (T1, T4) and Doug Biesecker (T3). (IAUC 7506, 7508, MPEC 2000-T33, T46)
P/2000 T2 (Kushida-Muramatsu): This comet (P/1993 X1 (= 1993t = 1993 XIX)) was recovered by T. Oribe (Saji Obs.) on Oct. 03 and 04, 2000. After finding further images of Sep. 24, 2000, (Oribe), Oct 08, 2000, (Delahodde, ESO) and Sep. and Oct. 1999, (Hergenrother, Kitt Peak), it was possible to confirm a linkage and to compute an orbit. This comet will not become brighter than 20^m at this apparition. (IAUC 7507, MPEC 2000-T45)
C/2000 SV₇₄ (LINEAR): Initially reported by LINEAR as an asteroid on Sep. 24, 2000, and found to be cometary later by M. Tichy (Klet). With pre-discovery observations of Sep. 05, 2000, the comet shows an orbit whit a perihelion in May 2002, at about 3.5 AU. It may become as bright as 13^m all through 2002. (IAUC 7510, MPEC 2000-U07)
P/2000 S4: Discovered by T. Gehrels with the Spacewatch telescope on Oct. 02, 2000. Prediscovery images by LINEAR of Sep. 01, 23, and 26, 2000. This 19^m comet passed its perihelion on Oct. 19, 2000, at about 2.3 AU. It is a short period comet with a period of about 19 years. (IAUC 7502)
C/2000 S3: Discovered by B. A. Skiff on LONEOS images of Sep. 29, 2000. Pre-discovery images by LINEAR of Sep. 20, 2000. The 17.5^m comet passed its perihelion in July 2000, at about 2.7 AU. It is a periodic comet with a period of about 40 years. (IAUC 7501)
P/2000 S2 (Shoemaker-LINEAR): Re-Discovery of comet D/1984 W1 (Shoemaker 2) by LINEAR on Sep. 27, 2000, as a 17.5^m object. Identification by S. Nakano with a correction of delta(T) of +23.2 days. The new designation is 146P/Shoemaker-LINEAR.(IAUC 7498, 7499, MPEC 2000-S67)