Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams
IAUC 8982: C/2008 K3-K11, C/2008 L4
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Circular No. 8982
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)
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Phone 617-495-7440/7244/7444 (for emergency use only)
COMETS C/2008 K3-K11 AND C/2008 L4 (SOHO)
Further to IAUC 8981, additional near-sun presumed comets have
been found on SOHO website images -- all Kreutz sungrazers except
for C/2008 K7 (Meyer group), which was tiny, stellar in appearance,
and faint (mag about 7.5-8), and C/2008 K10, which was small and
stellar in appearance (mag 7-7.5, brightening as it left the C2
field-of-view but never appeared in C3). C/2008 K10 has been
identified by R. Kracht with C/1999 X3 (cf. IAUC 8735; not reported
until 2006 and being near the limit of visibility in C2 images) and
C/2004 E2 (cf. IAUC 8365), an identification confirmed by B. G.
Marsden (with linked orbits and residuals published on MPC 2008-S49;
for epoch 2008 May 14.0 TT, T = 2008 May 31.334 TT, q = 0.04797 AU,
e = 0.98162, Peri. = 353.611 deg, Node = 323.655 deg, i = 6.259 deg,
equinox 2000.0); Marsden notes that close approaches occurred to
the earth on 2000 Jan. 13 (Delta = 0.058 AU) and Mars on 2004 May
19 (Delta_M = 0.032 AU). K. Battams writes that C/2008 K3 was tiny,
extremely faint (mag about 8.5), and stellar in appearance. C/2008
K4 was one of the brightest comets seen by SOHO (saturating
slightly in both LASCO cameras, with estimated peak magnitude about
1-2), appearing as a bright teardrop in C3 images and having a
partly-forked, "thick" tail about 0.5 long in C2 images; both
SECCHI COR cameras also imaged C/2008 K4, with the tail appearing
somewhat thinner in the COR2A images and showing the slight "fork"
in the COR2B images. C/2008 K5 and C/2008 K7 were tiny and stellar
in appearance (mag about 7.5-8). C/2008 K6 was tiny and stellar in
appearance (mag about 7) in C3 images, and elongated and very
diffuse in C2 images. C/2008 K8 was very diffuse (mag about 8).
C/2008 K9 and C/2008 K11 were both small and very diffuse (mag
about 8-8.5, the former being perhaps slightly fainter than the
latter). C/2008 L4 was small and slightly diffuse (mag about 7-7.5).
Comet 2008 UT R.A.(2000)Decl. Inst. F MPEC
C/2008 K3 May 17.858 3 41.0 +17 51 C2 MK 2008-M13
C/2008 K4 21.988 4 08.3 +16 12 C3/2 RM 2008-M13
C/2008 K5 23.579 4 02.4 +18 52 C2 MK 2008-M13
C/2008 K6 25.513 4 10.2 +18 08 C3/2 HS 2008-O15
C/2008 K7 25.913 4 13.3 +22 23 C2 JR 2008-O15
C/2008 K8 28.079 4 20.9 +19 43 C2 JR 2008-O15
C/2008 K9 28.704 4 23.1 +19 47 C2 GP 2008-O15
C/2008 K10 30.881 4 27.8 +21 22 C2 RK 2008-O16
C/2008 K11 31.038 4 31.8 +20 05 C2 GS 2008-O16
C/2008 L4 June 2.371 4 39.4 +20 18 C2 MK 2008-O16
(C) Copyright 2008 CBAT
2008 September 26 (8982) Daniel W. E. Green
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