Electronic Telegram No. 2966
Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams
INTERNATIONAL ASTRONOMICAL UNION
CBAT Director:  Daniel W. E. Green; Hoffman Lab 209; Harvard University;
 20 Oxford St.; Cambridge, MA  02138; U.S.A.
e-mail:  cbatiau@eps.harvard.edu (alternate cbat@iau.org)
URL http://www.cbat.eps.harvard.edu/index.html
Prepared using the Tamkin Foundation Computer Network


COMET C/2012 A1 (PANSTARRS)
     Richard Wainscoat and David J. Tholen, University of Hawaii, Institute
for Astronomy, report the discovery of a comet on images taken with the
Pan-STARRS 1 telescope at Haleakala (discovery observations tabulated below);
two images show the object to be distinctly extended compared to nearby stars
in both images.  After posting on the Minor Planet Center's NEOCP webpage,
the object was also found to show cometary appearance on images taken by CCD
astrometrists elsewhere.  Tomas Vorobjov writes that 46 stacked 30-s images
taken by R. Holmes (Ashmore, IL, USA; 0.81-m f/4 astrograph; Jan. 5.3 UT)
that were measured by L. Buzzi, S. Foglia, and himself show a diffuse 8" coma
of mag 19.6-19.7 and a faint tail 15"-20" long in p.a. 85 deg.  Sergio Foglia
notes that six stacked 120-s images taken in very good transparency and
seeing (FWHM 1".1) with the 2.0-m f/10 "Faulkes Telescope North" at Haleakala
on Jan. 5.6 by P. Miller, P. Roche, A. Tripp, R. Miles, R. Holmes, L. Buzzi,
and himself (measured by Buzzi, Foglia, and Vorobjov) show a compact coma 7"
wide and a fan-shaped, slightly curved tail at least 15" long in p.a. around
65 deg.

     2012 UT             R.A. (2000) Decl.       Mag.
     Jan.  2.45305    8 26 43.20   +48 50 41.6   20.5
           2.46395    8 26 42.57   +48 50 42.1   20.5

The available astrometry, the following preliminary parabolic orbital elements
by G. V. Williams, and an ephemeris appear on MPEC 2012-A35.

     T = 2014 Mar. 11.8930 TT         Peri. = 203.2278
                                      Node  = 279.2941  2000.0
     q = 6.881843 AU                  Incl. = 118.9291


NOTE: These 'Central Bureau Electronic Telegrams' are sometimes
      superseded by text appearing later in the printed IAU Circulars.

                         (C) Copyright 2012 CBAT
2012 January 6                   (CBET 2966)              Daniel W. E. Green