104P/Kowal

104P/Kowal
Discovery
Discovered by Charles T. Kowal
Discovery date 13 January 1979
Alternative
designations
Kowal 2
1979 B1, 1991 X1
Orbital characteristics A
Epoch 31 July 2016
Observation arc 4,685 days (12.83 yr)
No. of observations used 133
Aphelion 5.347 AU
Perihelion 1.179 AU
Semi-major axis 3.263 AU
Eccentricity 0.6387
Orbital period 5.90 yr
Inclination 10.252°
Node 235.421°
Peri 200.674°
TJupiter 2.794
Earth MOID 0.2004 AU
Jupiter MOID 0.1687 AU
Dimensions 2 km
Comet total
magnitude (M1)
10.5 mag
Last perihelion 28 March 2016
4 May 2010
Next perihelion 11 Jan 2022[1][2]

104P/Kowal, also known as Kowal 2, is a periodic Jupiter-family comet discovered by Charles T. Kowal in 1979. The orbit was confirmed after new sightings in 1991 and 1998.[2]

In 2003, Gary Kronk and Brian Marsden noticed that an objet observed by Leo Boethin in 1973 was actually 104P/Kowal. From Boethin's report, it was apparent that comet Kowal 2 had been in a short, major outburst in 1973.[3]

References

  1. "104P/Kowal Orbit". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 2017-04-07.
  2. 1 2 Yoshida, Seiichi (2016-01-24). "104P/Kowal 2". Aerith Comet Catalog. Retrieved 2016-03-29.
  3. Marsden, Brian G. (11 December 2003). "IAUC 8255: 104P". Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
Numbered comets
Previous
103P/Hartley
104P/Kowal Next
105P/Singer Brewster
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.