COBS News archive

New Comet: C/2012 S1 (ISON)
September 29, 2012
Cbet nr. 3238, issued on 2012, September 24, announces the discovery of a new comet (discovery magnitude 18.8) by Vitali Nevski (Vitebsk, Belarus) and Artyom Novichonok (Kondopoga, Russia) on CCD images obtained on Sept. 21.06 UT with a 0.4-m f/3 Santel reflector of the International Scientific Optical Network (ISON) near Kislovodsk, Russia. The new comet has been designated C/2012 S1 (ISON).

New update on comet C/2011 L4 (PANSTARRS)
September 13, 2012
Comet C/2011 L4 (PANSTARRS), discovered by Pan-STARRS 1 telescope on Haleakala, Maui, on the night of 2011, June 5-6, will reach perihelion in March 2013 when it will be located only 0.30 AU from the Sun and might become a bright naked eye object ( with a peak magnitude of anywhere from +1 to -1). At its brightest C/2011 L4 will appear only 15 degrees from the Sun.

New Comet: P/2012 O3 (McNAUGHT)
July 31, 2012
Cbet nr. 3193, issued on 2012, July 26, announces the discovery of a new comet (discovery magnitude 18.0) by R. H. McNaught on CCD images obtained with the 0.5-m Uppsala Schmidt telescope at Siding Spring on July 23.7. The new comet has been designated P/2012 O3 (McNAUGHT).

New Comet: P/2012 O2 (MCNAUGHT)
July 25, 2012
Cbet nr. 3189, issued on 2012, July 23, announces the discovery of a new comet (discovery magnitude 18.3) by R. H. McNaught on CCD images obtained with the 0.5-m Uppsala Schmidt telescope at Siding Spring on July 20.7. The new comet has been designated P/2012 O2 (MCNAUGHT).

Comet 96P/Machholz Visible in SOHO Images
July 14, 2012
Every ~5.3 years, comet 96P/Machholz makes a close and personal swing around the Sun. At a distance of 0.12 AU, comet Machholz comes within 11 million miles (18 million km). That is 8 times closer to the Sun than the Earth and even 2.5 times closer than the innermost planet Mercury.

Recovery of comet P/1994 X1
June 06, 2012
Cbet Circular No. 3132, issued on 2012, May 31, announces the recovery of comet P/1994 X1 = 2012 K7 (McNaught-Russell) by our team; this comet was discovered on 1994, December 12 with the UK Schmidt Telescope at Siding Spring observatory and it was last observed on 1995, April 17.

Discovery of cometary appearance of 2011 KP36
June 03, 2012
2011 KP36 was originally discovered as an asteroid by T. H. Bressi of Spacewatch survey on 2011, May 21. Its orbit was unusual (actually a=38.6 AU, e=0.87, i=19°), belonging to the outer Solar System. Its T3 parameter (respect to Jupiter) is 2.64, so it entered our T3 internal list of targets.

New Comet: C/2012 K5 (LINEAR)
May 30, 2012
Cbet nr. 3127, issued on 2012, May 28, announces the discovery of a new comet (discovery magnitude 18.5) by the LINEAR survey on CCD images taken with the 1.0-m f/2.15 reflector on May 25.3. The new comet has been designated C/2012 K5 (LINEAR).

Recovery of comet P/2005 N3 (LARSON)
May 28, 2012
Cbet Circular No. 3123, issued on 2012, May 25, announces the recovery of comet P/2005 N3 (LARSON) = 2012 K4 (Larson) by our team; this comet was discovered on 2005, July 5.38 by S. Larson on CCD images taken in the course of the Mt. Lemmon Survey and it was last observed on 2005, December 02.

New Comet: P/2012 K3 (GIBBS)
May 24, 2012
Cbet nr. 3122, issued on 2012, May 23, announces the discovery of a new comet (discovery magnitude 18.3) by A. R. Gibbs on CCD images taken with the Mount Lemmon 1.5-m reflector on May 21.3. The new comet has been designated P/2012 K3 (GIBBS).

First images of Comet 67P close to its aphelion
May 12, 2012
Its not often that amateurs can provide an important support to professional astronomers involved in an international space mission. At a recent comet conference for the forthcoming Rosetta mission, which will orbit comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko in 2014, and place a lander on the surface.

Discovery of cometary nature of 2011 FR143
April 23, 2012
2011 FR143 was discovered by the Mt.Lemmon Sky Survey (part of the Catalina Sky Survey) on 2011 Mar. 29 and followed until Apr. 26. Its orbit was quite unusual (a=6.83 AU, e= 0.45 and a period of 17.9 yrs) and with a Tisserand parameter of 2.73 it was put in our special list of the T3 observing project.

New Comet: P/2012 F5 (GIBBS)
March 26, 2012
CBET 3069 and M.P.E.C. 2012-F87, issued on 2012, March 25, announced the discovery of a periodic comet by A. R. Gibbs on Mar. 22.8, through the Mount Lemmon 1.5-m reflector. On his images, Gibbs, found a stellar coma and a long, narrow tail about 7.4 arcmin long in p.a. 292.5 deg. The new object has been designated P/2012 F5 (GIBBS) by the Minor Planet Center.

Recovery of comet P/2005 JY126 (Catalina)
March 23, 2012
Cbet Circular No. 3065, issued on 2012, March 22, announces the recovery of comet P/2005 JY126 = P/2012 F4 (CATALINA) by our team; this comet was discovered on 2005, June 7.32 by Catalina Sky Survey and it was last observed on 2007, January 13.

SWAN Sungrazer Now In SOHO C2 Field
March 15, 2012
The newly discovered Comet SWAN has now entered the LASCO C2 instrument field on the SOHO spacecraft. This field observes closer to the Sun than the C3 instrument.

Watch Live as a Kreutz Sungrazing Comet Approaches the Sun
March 14, 2012
A few days ago Vladimir Bezugly noted a new comet in images taken with the SWAN instrument on the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) satellite. The comet was located within 20 degrees of the Sun and appeared to be on a Kreutz sungrazing orbit that will take it within a few solar radii of the Sun’s surface. Unfortunately no ground-based observations were possible.

Unusual Minor Planet 2011 YU75
February 20, 2012
This unusual minor planet was discovered by the Spacewatch sky survey on 2011, Dec. 26. It moves along a very eccentric orbit (perihelion close to Mars, aphelion nearly 3 AU away from Saturn). Currently its about 1 AU from Earth and 2 AU from the Sun, approaching its perihelion, scheduled for the end of April 2012 (q= 1.7 AU).

New Comet: P/2012 C3 (PANSTARRS)
February 20, 2012
Cbet nr. 3021, issued on 2012, February 16, announces the discovery of a new comet (discovery magnitude 21.6) by Larry Denneau and Richard Wainscoat in four exposures taken with the 1.8-m Pan-STARRS 1 telescope at Haleakala on February 15.3. The new comet has been designated P/2012 C3 (PANSTARRS).

New Comet: C/2012 C2 (BRUENJES)
February 14, 2012
Cbet nr. 3019, issued on 2012, February 12, announces the discovery of a new comet (discovery magnitude 15.3) by Manfred Bruenjes on 30-s CCD exposures taken on two nights with a 0.36-m f/2.0 Schmidt-Cassegrain reflector on February 11.1 & 12.08. The new comet has been designated C/2012 C2 (BRUENJES).

New Comet: C/2012 C1 (McNAUGHT)
February 11, 2012
Cbet nr.3016, issued on 2012, February 11, announces the discovery of a new comet (discovery magnitude 18.8) by R. H. McNaught on CCD images obtained on February 5.5, 2012 taken with the 0.5-m Uppsala Schmidt telescope at Siding Spring. The new comet has been designated C/2012 C1 (McNAUGHT).