65P/Gunn

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65P/Gunn
Comet 65P Gunn WISE.jpg
Infrared image of Gunn's Comet taken from the WISE observatory on 11 June 2010. [1]
Discovery [2]
Discovered by James E. Gunn
Discovery site Palomar Observatory
Discovery date17 October 1970
Designations
P/1954 P1, P/1970 U2
  • 1953 VIII, 1969 II
  • 1976 III, 1989 XI
  • 1970p
Orbital characteristics [3] [4]
Epoch 17 October 2024 (JD 2460600.5)
Observation arc 71.13 years
Earliest precovery date8 August 1954 [5]
Number of
observations		7,963
Aphelion 4.737 AU
Perihelion 1.597 AU
Semi-major axis 3.453 AU
Eccentricity 0.3194
Orbital period 6.414 years
Inclination 3.237°
136.09°
Argument of
periapsis 		41.568°
Mean anomaly 103.17°
Last perihelion16 June 2025
Next perihelion11 February 2033 [6]
TJupiter 2.991
Earth MOID 1.903 AU
Jupiter MOID 0.396 AU
Physical characteristics
Mean radius
< 5.4 km (3.4 mi) [7]
(V–R) = 0.54±0.06 [8]
Comet total
magnitude (M1)		10.1

65P/Gunn is a periodic comet in the Solar System orbiting the Sun every 6.41 years inside the main asteroid belt between the orbits of the planets Mars and Jupiter. [1]

Contents

Observational history

It was discovered on 11 October 1970 by James E. Gunn of Princeton University using the 122-cm Schmidt telescope at the Palomar Observatory. [2] It had a low brightness of magnitude 16 at that time. [9] In 1972, Elizabeth Roemer managed to observe 65P/Gunn close to aphelion. [10]

In 1980, it was noticed that a 19th magnitude comet found in plates obtained by Palomar Observatory on 8 August 1954 was a previous apparition of 65P/Gunn. [5] The link was confirmed by Toshiro Nomura and Brian G. Marsden. [11]

During the very favorable apparition of 1996, 65P/Gunn reached magnitude 12. [9]

Orbit

On 4 February 1970, the comet passed 0.015 AU (2.2 million km; 1.4 million mi) from Ceres. [12]

Physical characteristics

Infrared observations from the IRAS satellite in 1983 detected a dust trail around 65P/Gunn, indicating that it had a mass loss rate of 27±9 kg/s. [13] Additional observations from the Infrared Space Observatory in 1996 revealed a strongly asymmetric dust trail, with a higher mass loss rate of 100–300 kg/s by November 1996. [14]

CCD photometry conducted between 1993 and 1996 reveal a nucleus that is less than 11 km (6.8 mi) in diameter, later revised to 10.8 km (6.7 mi). [3] [7] The comet was very active when it was observed, therefore the size estimate likely represent an upper limit. [7] [8]

References

  1. 1 2 "WISE Catches Comet 65P/Gunn". jpl.nasa.gov. Jet Propulsion Laboratory. 14 June 2010. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
  2. 1 2 J. E. Gunn; M. Schmidt (11 December 1970). B. G. Marsden (ed.). "Comet Gunn (1970p)". IAU Circular. 2294 (1).
  3. 1 2 "65P/Gunn – JPL Small-Body Database Lookup". ssd.jpl.nasa.gov. Jet Propulsion Laboratory . Retrieved 14 April 2025.
  4. ↑ "65P/Gunn Orbit". Minor Planet Center . Retrieved 14 April 2025.
  5. 1 2 J. Dengel; R. Weinberger (17 November 1980). D. W. Green (ed.). "Comet on Palomar Sky Survey". IAU Circular. 3540 (2).
  6. ↑ "Horizons Batch for 65P/Gunn (90000688) on 2033-Feb-11" (Perihelion occurs when rdot flips from negative to positive). JPL Horizons. Archived from the original on 29 September 2025. Retrieved 29 September 2025. (JPL#K252/43, Soln.date: 2025-Sep-16)
  7. 1 2 3 J. Licandro; G. Tancredi; M. Lindgren; H. Rickman; R. G. Hutton (2000). "CCD Photometry of Cometary Nuclei, I: Observations from 1990–1995". Icarus. 147 (1): 161–179. Bibcode:2000Icar..147..161L. doi:10.1006/icar.2000.6442.
  8. 1 2 S. Borysenko; A. Baransky; E. Musiichuk (2019). "Photometric observations of ecliptic comet 47P/Ashbrook–Jackson and selected quasi-Hilda and main-belt comets at Kyiv Comet Station (MPC code - 585) in 2017". Icarus . 317: 44–47. arXiv: 2005.11143 . Bibcode:2019Icar..317...44B. doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2018.07.003.
  9. 1 2 G. W. Kronk. "65P/Gunn". Cometography.com. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  10. ↑ B. G. Marsden (1973). "Comets in 1972". Quarterly Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society. 14: 390–391. Bibcode:1973QJRAS..14..389M.
  11. ↑ T. Nomura (31 March 1981). B. G. Marsden (ed.). "Periodic Comet Gunn". IAU Circular. 3588 (1).
  12. ↑ B. Todorovic-Juchniewicz (12–16 June 1989). C. I. Lagerkvist; H. Rickman; B. A. Lindblad (eds.). On the Evolution of Orbit of Comet P/Gunn. Asteroids, Comets, Meteors III. Uppsala University. p. 459. Bibcode:1990acm..proc..459T.
  13. ↑ M. Ishiguro; Y. Sarugaku; M. Ueno; N. Miura; et al. (2007). "Dark red debris from three short-period comets: 2P/Encke, 22P/Kopff, and 65P/Gunn". Icarus. 189 (1): 169–183. Bibcode:2007Icar..189..169I. doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2007.01.003.
  14. ↑ L. Colangeli; E. Bussoletti; C. C. Pestellini; M. Fulle; et al. (1998). "ISOCAM Imaging of Comets 65P/Gunn and 46P/Wirtanen". Icarus. 134 (1): 35–46. Bibcode:1998Icar..134...35C. doi:10.1006/icar.1998.5944.
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