Electronic Telegram No. 2977
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 A2 (LINEAR)
     An apparently asteroidal object discovered by the LINEAR survey (discovery
observations tabulated below), and posted on the Minor Planet Center's NEOCP
webpage, has been found to show cometary appearance by other CCD astrometrists.
P. Birtwhistle (Great Shefford, Berkshire, England; 0.40-m f/6 reflector; Jan.
16.0 UT) writes that the object appears diffuse with a diameter of 12" with
total red mag 17.7 and a moderately concentrated center; the southwest edge is
less definite than the northwest edge, and a faint tail is suspected, extending
20" in p.a. 240 deg.  Additional images by Birtwhistle on Jan. 17.2 show
identical appearance.  L. Buzzi (Varese, Italy, 0.38-m f/6.8 reflector;
Jan. 16.1) notes that stacked images obtained in good seeing with a 0.38-m
f/6.8 reflector shows a compact coma 15" in size with red mag 18.1, faintly
elongated toward the west.  H. Sato (Tokyo, Japan; remotely using a 0.51-m
f/4.5 reflector at the RAS Observatory near Mayhill, NM, U.S.A.; Jan. 16.35-
16.36) reports that nine stacked 60-s exposures show a 12" coma (V-band
mag 17.5 in a circular aperture of diameter 13") and a hint of tail 10" long
toward p.a. 230 degrees.  S. Foglia reports that fifty stacked 30-s images
taken by R. Holmes (Ashmore, IL, USA, 0.76-m f/6.65 Ritchey-Chretien
reflector; Jan. 16.4; and measured by L. Buzzi, H. Devore, Foglia, and T.
Vorobjov) reveal a coma of size 12" x 15", elongated toward p.a. 261 deg.

     2012 UT             R.A. (2000) Decl.       Mag.   Observer
     Jan. 15.41290   12 53 20.61   +42 15 46.3   18.5   LINEAR
          15.42610   12 53 20.38   +42 16 02.8   18.3     "
          15.45206   12 53 20.03   +42 16 35.0   18.7     "

     The available astrometry, the following preliminary parabolic orbital
elements by G. V. Williams, and an ephemeris appear on MPEC 2012-B05.

     T = 2012 Nov.  7.8098 TT         Peri. = 102.7889
                                      Node  = 191.5270  2000.0
     q = 3.498753 AU                  Incl. = 125.9761


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      superseded by text appearing later in the printed IAU Circulars.

                         (C) Copyright 2012 CBAT
2012 January 18                  (CBET 2977)              Daniel W. E. Green