News - February 2003
02/28/2003
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D. K. Lynch, R. W. Russell, and D. L. Kim (The Aerospace Corporation), M. L. Sitko
(Univ. of Cincinnati) and R. B. Perry (Langley Research Center, NASA) report about
their 3-14-micron spectroscopy of comet C/2002 Y1 (Juels-Holvorcem) on
Feb. 20.6 UT. The spectrum was a smooth and featureless continuum with a 8-14-micron
temperature of about 280 ± 20 K (roughly 12 times higher than the radiative
equilibrium blackbody temperature). Further informtion can be found in IAUC 8083.
(IAUC 8083)
02/24/2003
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A first ground-based post-perihelion observation of comet C/2002 V1 (NEAT)
was reported by M. Mattiazzo (Australia). His rough estimate placed the comet at
about 2m.
(Comets Mailing List)
02/19/2003
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Comet C/2002 V1 (NEAT) makes an impressive sight in the SOHO/LASCO C3 images.
It is quite bright although not as bright to be seen in daylight: Several attempts
to observe the comet at local noon around perihelion were unsuccessful and support
the prediction that the maximum brightness was indeed fainter than -2m.
The comet should now become fainter and move into southern skies.
02/17/2003
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The last known brightness estimation of comet C/2002 V1 (NEAT) made on the
morning of Feb. 16, by J. J. Gonzáles Suárez showed a uncertain value
of -0.5m. Due to the low height (2 degrees) the brightness is uncertain
by at least 0.5m. Comparison "star" was Mercury, a correction
for differential extinction was made. With this the comet is still in the region
of a maximum brightness of von -1m. In the available images of the
SOHO/LASCO C3 coronagraph the brightness is hard to estimate since the comet
saturates the pixels of the detector.
(Comets Mailing List)
02/16/2003
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At about 16:00 UT comet C/2002 V1 (NEAT) will become visible in the C3 images
of the SOHO/LASCO coronagraph. The publicly available images will be most likely
saturated due to the brightness of the comet, but other images with much shorter
integration times and different filters will be taken, too. The comet will leave the
field of view of the C3 images on Feb. 20. The apparent path of the comet in the
SWAN images and in the C3 field of view can be found in this
SOHO Hotshot.
02/13/2003
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The LINEAR survey discovered the first
asteroid with an aphelion inside the orbit of the Earth on Feb. 11, 2003.
The 17m asteroid A/2003 CP20 has an aphelion distance
of 0.978 AU while the perihelion distance of Earth is 0.983 AU. The object was
discovered near its maximum possible elongation of about 76°. The minimum
possible distance to Earth is about 0.19 AU, to Venus 0.05 AU.
(MPEC 2003-C63)
02/12/2003
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C/2020 V1 (NEAT) brightens rapidly but disappears now in the evening sky.
From Feb. 16 - 20, the comet will be visible in the SOHO C3 images. The now
extrapolated maximum brightness may be around -1m. A disintegration
is still possible. The comet was an easy object low in the evening sky: A selection
of images can be found at the
Amtsgymnasiet Sønderborg, Denmark
and by Ginger Mayfield, Colorado, USA
an image with a fixed digital camera.
(Comets Mailing List)
02/08/2003
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A new orbit determination for comet C/2003 A2 (Gleason) with prediscovery observations by
NEAT (found and measured by S. Hönig and R. Stoss) show that it moves on a
slightly hyperbolic orbit. The perihelion distance of about 11.4 AU is the largest
for a comet until now.
(MPEC 2003-C47)
02/04/2003
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One SOHO comet received an orbit and a designation: C/2003 B1 (SOHO) is the
38th member of the Meyer group,
found by X.-M. Zhou. SOHO has now found 547 comets.
(MPEC 2003-C23)
02/02/2003
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New observations of the still unnamed comet C/2002 A2 show that it
is most likely a long-periodic comet and not a Centaur as previously suspected.
The new orbit indicates a perihelion distance of about 11.4 AU which will be reached in
January 2004. Still several solutions are possible and it will need a longer arc
to be sure about the orbit of this object.
(MPEC 2003-C07)
02/01/2003
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Three SOHO comets received orbits and designations: C/2002 V5 (SOHO) is the
15th member of the Marsden group,
found by R. Matson. C/2002 X6 (SOHO) was found by R. Kracht, C/2002 Y2 (SOHO)
by R. Matson. The two latter comets increase the number of
Meyer group comets to 37. SOHO
has now found 546 comets.
(MPEC 2003-C02)
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R. W. Russell, D. K. Lynch, and D. L. Kim (The Aerospace Corporation), M. L. Sitko
(University of Cincinnati) and W. Golisch (NASA Infrared Telescope Facility - IRTF)
report about the results of infrared spectroscopy of comet
C/2002 X5 (Kudo-Fujikawa) on Jan. 9.1 and 10.05-10.14 UT. A relatively
smooth thermal-emission spectrum, over most of the spectral range (3-14 microns)
was observed, the shape resembling a blackbody near or slightly above the blackbody
radiative equilibrium temperature of 340 K. If a silicate emission feature was
present it would be no more than about 15 percent of the continuum. More details can
be found in IAUC 8062.
(IAUC 8062)