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IAUC 7960: C/2002 Q2

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                                                  Circular No. 7960
Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams
INTERNATIONAL ASTRONOMICAL UNION
Mailstop 18, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, Cambridge, MA 02138, U.S.A.
IAUSUBS@CFA.HARVARD.EDU or FAX 617-495-7231 (subscriptions)
CBAT@CFA.HARVARD.EDU (science)
URL http://cfa-www.harvard.edu/iau/cbat.html  ISSN 0081-0304
Phone 617-495-7440/7244/7444 (for emergency use only)


COMETS C/2002 Q2 (LINEAR) AND C/2002 Q3 (LINEAR)
     S. Adams, Lincoln Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, reports the discovery of two comets, both with coma
diameter about 90" and both in the same field and moving in the
same direction on LINEAR images taken on Aug. 26.1 UT.  Following
posting on the NEO Confirmation Page, additional CCD observers have
confirmed both objects to be cometary in appearance.  On Aug. 26.9,
P. Kusnirak (0.65-m f/3.6 reflector, Ondrejov) found C/2002 Q2 to
be well condensed with a coma of diameter about 20" and V = 17.7,
whereas C/2002 Q3 appeared very diffuse without condensation and
coma diameter about 25".  A. Galad (0.6-m reflector, Modra)
reported C/2002 Q2 to be diffuse with m_1 = 17.2, and S. P. Laurie
(0.35-m reflector, Church Stretton, U.K.) reported the same object
as diffuse with an 8" coma.  P. R. Holvorcem and M. Schwartz
(0.36-m reflector, Cottage Grove, OR) found C/2002 Q2 to be diffuse
with a coma of diameter about 17" and m_1 = 17.1 on Aug. 27.3,
whereas they noted C/2002 Q3 to be 2-2.5 mag fainter with a hint of
diffuseness.  The available astrometry, together with the
preliminary parabolic orbital elements given below (by B. G.
Marsden) that confirm the apparent relationship of the two comets
(with C/2002 Q2 as the primary component), appear on MPEC 2002-Q37.
The discovery observation and orbital elements for C/2002 Q2:

     2002 UT             R.A. (2000) Decl.        m1
     Aug. 26.14383   17 16 24.15   +76 49 54.5   18.8

     T = 2002 Aug. 19.883 TT          Peri. = 127.932
                                      Node  = 154.812   2000.0
     q = 1.29526 AU                   Incl. =  96.235

The discovery observation and orbital elements for C/2002 Q3:

     2002 UT             R.A. (2000) Decl.        m1
     Aug. 26.14383   17 04 15.38   +76 58 42.3   19.3

     T = 2002 Aug. 20.612 TT          Peri. = 127.733
                                      Node  = 154.696   2000.0
     q = 1.29744 AU                   Incl. =  96.366

                      (C) Copyright 2002 CBAT
2002 August 27                 (7960)            Daniel W. E. Green

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