Comet & Asteroids 
Comet & Asteroids |
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July 02 , 2006
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Forum :  |
 For Latest Astronomy News |
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| Asteroid 2004 XP14. | On July 3rd, 2006, there will be a spectacular flyby of the near-Earth Apollo asteroid 2004 XP14. Like the flyby of 2002 NY40 in 2002, 2004 XP14 will amaze visual observers with incredible speed visible in medium size telescopes. Near close approach is around 4:44m UT July 3, this 600-meter/yard diameter asteroid Passes only 268,873 miles from the Earth, only 1.1 times the distance to the moon away. Peaking at visual magnitude 11.1 four hours later, users of telescopes of 6 inches (15cm) or larger can enjoy observing a rare celestial treat. At time of close approach, 2004 XP14 races along at 8.323 degrees per hour, or a mean lunar diameter every four minutes! Such a rapid speed results in direct motion becoming visible, second by second. Just as naked eye Earth satellites are seen crossing the sky, 2004 XP14 will both amaze and challenge the observer, both visually and those taking images. 3 Jul 2006 0 03h24m01.02s N05 46' 43.9" to read more |
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| 45P/Honda- Mrkos- Pajdusakova |
This comet is currently in Aries heading towards Taurus. It was first observed in the Southern Hemisphere at 11.4 mag on June 6, by Michael Mattiazzo. It will not be visible in the Northern Hemisphere. DateTT R.A. (2000) Dec. Delta r Elong. Phase m1 2006 06 29 05 25.94 +22 16.4 1.443 0.531 15.0 29.6 8.8 2006 07 04 06 03.44 +22 55.5 1.499 0.538 11.0 21.2 9.0 2006 07 09 06 39.63 +23 01.8 1.558 0.565 7.5 13.5 9.5 2006 07 14 07 13.80 +22 39.1 1.618 0.609 4.4 7.3 10.2 2006 07 19 07 45.53 +21 52.9 1.680 0.665 1.9 2.9 11.1 2006 07 24 08 14.67 +20 49.3 1.744 0.728 1.0 1.4 12.0 2006 07 29 08 41.30 +19 33.6 1.810 0.796 2.3 2.9 12.8 |
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| Comet 73P /Schwassmann -Wachmann 3 |
The periodic comet 73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 3 with an orbital period of 5.43 to 5.46 passed 0.0786 AU from the earth on May 12th, 2006. The comet was discovery in 1930. It is expected to be visible to the naked eye. Currently it is at magnitude 11.9 with a condensed nucleus. During the last observed return on August 19, 1995 at magnitude 12.9 the comets brightness increased by 6 magnitudes in the beginning of October, due to the nucleus breaking apart into three main nuclei. DateTT R.A. (2000) Dec. Delta r Elong. Phase m1 2006 07 04 02 03.84 -11 30.0 0.432 1.021 78.3 77.3 10.3 2006 07 09 02 10.26 -11 35.1 0.461 1.051 81.3 73.0 10.6 2006 07 14 02 15.68 -11 41.0 0.487 1.084 84.5 69.0 11.0 2006 07 19 02 20.07 -11 49.4 0.510 1.120 87.9 65.0 11.3 2006 07 24 02 23.35 -12 01.3 0.531 1.159 91.6 61.2 11.6 2006 07 29 02 25.45 -12 17.4 0.550 1.200 95.5 57.4 11.9 |
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| C/2006 A1 (Pojmanski) | On January 1, the Polish researcher Dr. Grzegorz Pojmanski from Warsaw University Astronomical Observatory discovered his second comet using the ASAS automatic telescope. After the observation was confirmed on January 4 , the comet was given the name C/2006 A1 (Pojmanski). The 12-13 magnitude object is currently in Southern Hemisphere. It reaches perihelion on February 22, and may reach a bright as magnitude 7.6. Date TT R. A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. Phase m1 2006 02 04 20 26.04 -51 39.9 1.163 0.691 36.4 57.7 8.0 2006 02 09 20 18.42 -46 53.5 1.075 0.632 35.4 64.6 7.6 2006 02 14 20 13.03 -40 36.7 0.984 0.586 34.6 73.0 7.1 2006 02 19 20 11.25 -32 19.7 0.897 0.560 34.1 81.9 6.8 2006 02 24 20 14.36 -21 44.3 0.824 0.557 34.2 89.4 6.5 2006 03 01 20 22.96 -09 07.6 0.780 0.577 35.6 92.6 6.5 2006 03 06 20 36.72 +04 21.2 0.773 0.618 38.5 90.3 6.8 2006 03 11 20 54.68 +17 06.0 0.806 0.674 42.4 83.8 7.2 2006 03 16 21 15.67 +27 57.1 0.871 0.740 46.2 75.7 7.7 2006 03 21 21 38.55 +36 35.0 0.960 0.814 49.1 67.7 8.2 2006 03 26 22 02.39 +43 13.6 1.063 0.892 51.1 60.6 8.7 2006 03 31 22 26.43 +48 17.6 1.174 0.972 52.4 54.5 9.2 to read more |
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C/2005 E2 (McNaught) |
At discovery on March 12, by R. H. McNaught), it was faint as 16.4 magnitude . It has steadily been brightening. Now it is below 11th magnitude in the constellation Capricorn. It is predicted to reach to 10 magnitude from January to March. In the Southern Hemisphere, it is observable only until December. In the Northern Hemisphere, the altitude will be getting lower slowly after January, and it will be too low to observe in April. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Dec. Delta r Elong. m1 Nov 01 19 57.61 -28 17.3 2.153 2.164 77.4 10.5 Jan 15 22 25.78 -07 09.8 2.223 1.615 41.0 9.3 Jan 20 22 38.24 -05 14.2 2.224 1.593 39.6 9.3 Jan 25 22 50.97 -03 15.3 2.225 1.574 38.2 9.2 Jan 30 23 03.96 -01 13.4 2.227 1.557 37.0 9.2 Feb 04 23 17.20 +00 50.9 2.231 1.544 35.9 9.1 Feb 09 23 30.71 +02 57.2 2.235 1.533 34.8 9.1 Feb 14 23 44.46 +05 04.7 2.242 1.525 33.9 9.1 Feb 19 23 58.49 +07 12.8 2.251 1.521 33.0 9.1 Feb 24 00 12.77 +09 20.6 2.262 1.520 32.3 9.1 Mar 01 00 27.33 +11 27.6 2.275 1.522 31.5 9.1 |
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Dr. Michael Brown, associate professor of planetary astronomy, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California, presented his discovery and major findings of the most distant object ever detected orbiting the Sun, at a press media teleconference held on the 29 th July 2005.
He and his colleagues made the observations as part of a NASA-funded research project. With the current temporary name 2003UB313, the KBO was discovered in an ongoing survey at Palomar Observatory's Samuel Oschin telescope by astronomers Mike Brown (Caltech), Chad Trujillo (Gemini Observatory), and David Rabinowitz ( Yale University). They have proposed a name (lilah) to the IAU and will announce it when that name is accepted. |
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| 9P/Tempel 1 |
to read more
Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 May 30 12 55.13 3 53.0 0.751 1.550 122 9.6 June 04 12 58.30 02 07.7 0.766 1.539 119 9.6 June 09 13 02.51 00 17.7 0.783 1.529 116 9.6 June 14 13 07.72 -01 36.1 0.802 1.521 113 9.6 |
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| A recently rediscovered 500-meter | Near-Earth Asteroid (NEA), 2004 MN4, is predicted to pass near the Earth on 13 April 2029. The flyby distance is uncertain and an Earth impact cannot yet be ruled out. The odds of impact of 1 in 37, have now been updated, and now put at 1 in 55,556 (this rock should still merit special monitoring, though). | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A 5 meters wide asteroid | discovered on Dec. 21 by Stan Pope, was found to have had made a close approach on Dec. 19, 2004 ; approaching Earth from the direction of the Sun and so would have been nearly impossible to detect prior to close passage, and passing over the Antarctica .
The object, named 2004 YD5, passed over at an altitude of 36,000 kilometres, just under the orbits of geostationary satellites. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The Rosetta space probe | made a fly-by of planet Earth on 4 March, 2005, at about 22:10 UT . It came within 1954 kilometres, and was visible as a 8th magnitude star in the constellations Leo and Sextans. Sky watchers in Europe were favourably placed to follow this event using small telescopes or binoculars.
This was the first of the four planet fly-bys that Rosetta will carry out in its long journey to its target, Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Rosetta will reach the comet in 2014, enter into orbit and deliver it`s lander, Philae, onto the surface.  to read more | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| On the 29th september, 2005 (Gone) |
It then passed into Telescopium . We won't get another chance to see such a small space rock under the microscope... Toutatis will not pass this close again until 2562...! Discovered in 1989, this 2.9 x 1.5 x 1.2 mile asteroid has an eccentric four-year orbit that periodically brings it very close to Earth. Toutatis l brightened to within the range of large binoculars and modest telescopes for a few days around September 19th. to read more | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The closest observed |
The previously unknown object, spanning 5- 10 metres across, has been named 2004 FU162. It streaked across the sky just 6500 kilometres - roughly the radius of the Earth - above the ground on 31 March, although details have only now emerged. |
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| Orbital elements:2004 FU162 Epoch 2004 July 14.0 TT = JDT 2453200.5
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| The most distant | object orbiting the sun has been detected. It’s about 1/3 the size of the earth, 3 billion kilometres further away from the Sun than Pluto. This object has been provisionally named "Sedna", after the Inuit goddess of the sea. Measurements suggest that Sedna has a diameter between 1,180 to 2,360km in diameter and is a half-rock and half-ice mixture. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Astronomers came |
within minutes of
alerting the world to a potential asteroid strike last month. On 13
January a 30m object, 2004 AS1, was predicted to have a one-in-four
chance of hitting the planet within 36 hours.
It could have caused local devastation and the researchers contemplated a call to the President before new data finally showed there was no danger. The procedures for raising the alarm in such circumstances are now being revised. At the time, the president's team would have been putting the final touches to a speech he was due to make the following day at the headquarters of Nasa, the US space agency. In it he planned to reset the course of manned spaceflight, sending it back to the Moon and on to Mars, but he could have had something very different to say. At about 30m wide, the asteroid was big enough to cause considerable damage after exploding in the atmosphere. 2004 AS1 turned out to be bigger than anyone had thought - about 500m wide. It passed the Earth at a distance of about 12 million-km - 32 times the Earth-Moon distance. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| NASA's Stardust probe |
During the flyby, the highest resolution images ever taken of a comet's nucleus were obtained and have been the subject of intense study since the flyby. A short exposure image showing tremendous surface detail was overlain on a long exposure image taken just 10 seconds later showing jets.  to see animation
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| Near-Earth asteroid | Aten 2004UH1 (0 - 10 m in size) Discovered by Spacewatch - Steward Observatory, Kitt Peak on 23 Oct 2004, coming 0.0019836AU minimum distance to the earth on the 24th Oct. to read more
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| Asteroid 2004 FH | had a close encounter with our planet on March 18th 2004, 2200 GMT. It came 43,000 km from the Earth's surface! That just slightly higher than most geosynchronous satellites , that orbit at an altitude of 35,800 km..
to read more |
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The planets |
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All credits to Distant Suns, the Astronomy program. Highlights
This months events HERE The Rosetta space probe was launched successfully into space, on Tuesday 2nd March 2004, at 07:17 ... Archive
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