Discovery | |
---|---|
Discovered by | Charles T. Kowal |
Discovery date | 13 January 1979 |
Designations | |
Kowal 2 1979 B1, 1991 X1 | |
Orbital characteristics [1] | |
Epoch | July 31, 2016 |
Observation arc | 4,685 days (12.83 yr) |
Number of observations | 133 |
Aphelion | 5.347 AU |
Perihelion | 1.179 AU |
Semi-major axis | 3.263 AU |
Eccentricity | 0.6387 |
Orbital period | 5.90 yr |
Inclination | 10.252° |
235.421° | |
Argument of periapsis | 200.674° |
Last perihelion | 11 Jan 2022 [2] [3] 28 March 2016 4 May 2010 |
Next perihelion | 2027-Oct-12 [4] |
TJupiter | 2.794 |
Earth MOID | 0.2004 AU |
Jupiter MOID | 0.1687 AU |
Physical characteristics | |
Dimensions | 2 ± 1 km [5] |
Comet total magnitude (M1) | 10.5 mag |
104P/Kowal, also known as Kowal 2, is a periodic Jupiter-family comet discovered by Charles T. Kowal in 1979. The orbit was confirmed after new sightings in 1991 and 1998. [3]
The comet was in a orbit with a perihelion distance of 1.50 AU and an orbital period of 6.38 years until an approach to Jupiter on 15 January 1996 reduced both to 1.40 AU and 6.18 years respectively. [6] A further encounter with Jupiter on 4 July 2007 at a distance of 0.300 AU reduced the perihelion distance to 1.18 AU and the orbital period to 5.90 years. One more close approach to Jupiter on 30 May 2019 reduced the perihelion distance to 1.07 AU and orbital period to 5.74 years. [7]
In 2003, Gary Kronk and Brian Marsden noticed that an object observed by Leo Boethin in 1973 was actually 104P/Kowal. From Boethin's report, it was apparent that comet Kowal 2 had been in a short, major outburst to apparent magnitude 9.5 in 1973. [8]
During the 1997–98 apparition, the comet was brighter than expected, reaching an apparent magnitude of 13 in mid January. [6] The comet wasn't observed during the 2010 apparition. [3] During the 2022 apparition, it brightened to a magnitude of 9.2 according to Chris Wyatt. [9]
16P/Brooks, also known as Brooks 2, is a periodic comet discovered by William Robert Brooks on July 7, 1889, but failed to note any motion. He was able to confirm the discovery the next morning, having seen that the comet had moved north. On August 1, 1889, the famous comet hunter Edward Emerson Barnard discovered two fragments of the comet labeled "B" and "C" located 1 and 4.5 arc minutes away. On August 2, he found another four or five, but these were no longer visible the next day. On August 4, he observed two more objects, labeled "D" and "E". "E" disappeared by the next night and "D" was gone by the next week. Around mid-month, "B" grew large and faint, finally disappearing at the beginning of September. "C" managed to survive until mid-November 1889. The apparition ended on January 13, 1891. After the discovery apparition, the comet has always been over two magnitudes fainter.
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