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IAUC 8988: P/2008 T1

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                                                  Circular No. 8988
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 T1 (BOATTINI)
     A. Boattini reports his discovery of another comet on CCD
images taken with the Mt. Lemmon 1.5-m reflector (discovery
observation tabulated below), the fairly condensed coma being about
10" in diameter, with a fan tail about 60" long spanning p.a. 245-
275 deg (with the brightest tail structure in p.a. 250 deg).  Four
stacked 60-s follow-up unfiltered images with the same telescope by
R. E. Hill on Oct. 2.4 UT show a coma diameter of 10"-12" and a
broad, diffuse tail of length 40"-50" in p.a. about 300 deg.
Following posting on the 'NEOCP' webpage, P. Birtwhistle (Great
Shefford, Berkshire, England, 0.40-m reflector, Oct. 2.1) finds a
diffuse coma of diameter 10", extending 15" in p.a. 248 deg (with a
possible straight tail extending for 150" at the same p.a.).  R.
Ligustri (Talmassons, Udine, Italy, 0.25-m reflector, Oct. 2.2)
reports that seven 300-s co-added exposures show a coma diameter of
about 15".  J. E. McGaha (Tucson, AZ, U.S.A., 0.62-m reflector,
Oct. 2.2) writes that a 240-s exposure shows a bright nuclear
condensation of diameter 5" with a faint coma of diameter 12" and a
faint tail 150" long in p.a. 256 deg.  Images taken by R. Holmes
(Charleston, IL, U.S.A., 0.61-m astrograph, Oct. 2.3) and measured
by H. Devore show a wide tail 2'01" long in p.a. 251.6 deg.  J.
Young (Table Mountain 0.61-m reflector) finds a very small bright
coma of diameter 6" with a hint of a broad, weak, fan-shaped tail
about 16" long spanning 225-310 deg.  E. Guido, Castellammare di
Stabia, Italy, writes that eighty stacked 60-s unfiltered CCD
exposures taken remotely by G. Sostero, P. Camilleri, and himself
with a 0.25-m reflector near Mayhill, NM, U.S.A., on Oct. 2.4 show
a coma about 10" in diameter and a broad, fan-shaped tail about 40"
toward p.a. 244 deg.

     2008 UT             R.A. (2000) Decl.       Mag.
     Oct.  1.34535    0 42 43.52   + 7 48 45.6   18.0

The available astrometry (including prediscovery Spacewatch
astrometry from Sept. 2 and 21), the following elliptical orbital
elements by B. G. Marsden, and an ephemeris appear on MPEC 2008-T30.
Marsden notes that the comet made a close approach to Jupiter in
Apr. 2003 (minimum distance 0.03 AU).

     T = 2008 Feb. 25.3012 TT         Peri. =  35.4139
     e = 0.287660                     Node  = 291.6541  2000.0
     q = 3.028416 AU                  Incl. =   2.0806
       a =  4.251365 AU    n = 0.1124376    P =   8.77 years

                      (C) Copyright 2008 CBAT
2008 October 2                 (8988)            Daniel W. E. Green

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