Comet C/2013 S1 (Catalina)
Abstract
An apparently asteroidal object discovered in the course of the Catalina Sky Survey (discovery observations tabulated below), and posted on the Minor Planet Center's NEOCP webpage, has been reported to show cometary appearance by CCD astrometrists elsewhere. H. Sato (Tokyo, Japan; remotely with an iTelescope 0.51-m f/6.8 astrograph + luminance filter at Siding Spring) found a moderately condensed coma of diameter 15" with no obvious tail in eight stacked 60-s exposures on Sept. 29.6 UT. R. A. Kowalski (Mt. Lemmon 1.5-m reflector; Oct. 1.4) noted a bright, condensed coma and a faint, wedge-shaped 10" tail in p.a. 285 deg. Images obtained on Oct. 2.95 with the 1.06-m KLENOT Telescope at Klet by M. Tichy, M. Honkova, J. Ticha, and M. Kocer reveal a diffuse coma of diameter about 10", with no tail visible. P. Bacci writes that twenty-one co-added 60-s exposures taken with a 0.60-m f/4 reflector at San Marcello Pistoiese, Italy (measured by Bacci, L. Tesi, and G. Fagioli) on Oct. 3.06 show the object to be diffuse with an elongation 24" long in p.a. 288 deg. 2013 UT R.A. (2000) Decl. Mag. Sept.28.39198 3 45 18.41 +16 32 54.0 19.0 28.39872 3 45 18.03 +16 32 44.0 18.5 28.40553 3 45 17.73 +16 32 32.2 18.6 28.43821 3 45 16.48 +16 31 41.3 19.1 28.44684 3 45 16.14 +16 31 27.0 19.3 28.45653 3 45 15.70 +16 31 12.1 19.1 28.46430 3 45 15.52 +16 30 59.3 28.46825 3 45 15.39 +16 30 52.4 28.47877 3 45 14.66 +16 30 36.4 19.6 28.48251 3 45 14.53 +16 30 31.3 19.3 28.48439 3 45 14.53 +16 30 27.4 19.6 The available astrometry, the following preliminary parabolic orbital elements by G. V. Williams, and an ephemeris appear on MPEC 2013-T27. T = 2013 Aug. 2.5947 TT Peri. = 165.9655 Node = 221.5333 2000.0 q = 2.823224 AU Incl. = 83.9403
- Publication:
-
Central Bureau Electronic Telegrams
- Pub Date:
- October 2013
- Bibcode:
- 2013CBET.3667....1S