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IAUC 8978: P/2008 S1 = 2008 JK; 205P; 29P

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IAUC number 

                                                  Circular No. 8978
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://www.cfa.harvard.edu/iau/cbat.html  ISSN 0081-0304
Phone 617-495-7440/7244/7444 (for emergency use only)


COMET P/2008 S1 = 2008 JK (CATALINA-McNAUGHT)
     B. G. Marsden has identified astrometry of the apparently
asteroidal object 2008 JK (MPS 249095; discovery by A. Boattini on
Catalina Sky Survey images, with the first observation tabulated
below), which had briefly been posted on the Minor Planet Center's
'NEOCP' webpage last May, as being identical with comet C/2008 S1
(cf. IAUC 8977).

     2008 UT             R.A. (2000) Decl.       Mag.
     May   2.34377   14 55 09.84   +11 09 28.2   19.8

The following orbital elements by Marsden (from MPEC 2008-S26)
indicate a relatively close approach to Jupiter (0.18 AU) in Aug.
1990, with the perihelion distance prior to that encounter being q
= 1.5 AU.

                    Epoch = 2008 Oct. 21.0 TT
     T = 2008 Oct.  1.8082 TT         Peri. = 203.6048
     e = 0.667506                     Node  = 111.3691  2000.0
     q = 1.190656 AU                  Incl. =  15.1108
       a =  3.580983 AU    n = 0.1454456    P =   6.78 years


COMET 205P/GIACOBINI
     D. T. Durig and K. N. Hatchett, Cordell-Lorenz Observatory,
Sewanee, TN, have reported observations of two additional
components of comet 205P.  The first of these, 4 mag fainter than
the primary body, was observed on Sept. 17.1, 19.1, and 22.1 UT
some 70" west and 5" south of the primary.  The second additional
component, 5 mag fainter than the primary body, was observed on
Sept. 19.1 and 22.1 UT some 660" west and 60" south of the primary.
Animations of the objects can be seen at
http://arthur.sewanee.edu/obsv/view.php.
Approximate ephemerides for the additional components can be
computed by applying corrections of Delta(T) = +0.014 and +0.133
day, respectively, to the orbital elements for comet 205P on MPC
63822 (or the 2008 set on MPEC 2008-R78, where the provisional
designation P/2008 R6 is used).


COMET 29P/SCHWASSMANN-WACHMANN
     J. A. Henriquez, Tenerife, Canary Islands, reports an outburst
of this comet from CCD images taken with a 0.2-m f/9 reflector;
available magnitudes:  Sept. 15.18 UT, 14.8; 21.2, 11.3 (stellar
appearance).

                      (C) Copyright 2008 CBAT
2008 September 22              (8978)            Daniel W. E. Green

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