Discovery [1] | |
---|---|
Discovered by | Alexander F. I. Forbes |
Discovery site | Cape Town, South Africa |
Discovery date | 31 May 1930 |
Designations | |
1930e [2] 1930 V | |
Orbital characteristics [3] [4] | |
Epoch | 6 June 1930 (JD 2426133.5) |
Observation arc | 49 days |
Number of observations | 54 |
Perihelion | 1.1528 AU |
Eccentricity | ~1.000 |
Orbital period | <270,000 years (inbound) |
Inclination | 97.0912° |
279.265° | |
Argument of periapsis | 320.966° |
Last perihelion | 10 May 1930 |
Physical characteristics | |
9.0 (1930 apparition) |
Comet Forbes, formally designated as C/1930 L1, is a parabolic comet that was only observed through optical telescopes in the year 1930.
The comet was discovered by Alexander F. I. Forbes as a 9th-magnitude object on the early morning skies of 31 May 1930. It was the fifth new comet of the year and the second of three comets he discovered overall. [5] He immediately informed the Union Observatory in Johannesburg after an exact position was determined about two days later. [1] [6]
The comet was already on its outbound flight since it reached perihelion on 10 May 1930, about three weeks before discovery, but was still approaching Earth at the time, allowing it to be regularly observed from Johannesburg until the end of June. [7] It was only visible in the southern hemisphere until June 23, when first northern observations were recorded by the National Observatory in Athens, Greece. [8]
George van Biesbroeck made his first observations of the comet from the Yerkes Observatory on June 21, with Georg von Struve following suit from the Berlin Observatory shortly afterwards, [9] however by that time it rapidly faded away from magnitude 11 to 15 by the end of the month, though a short tail was reported. [6] Van Biesbroeck continued his photographic observations of the comet until July 17, and its last known position was recorded on July 21. [10]
In 1952, Austrian astronomer Erich Senftl of the Vienna Observatory was able to calculate a retrograde parabolic orbit based from 54 observations over 49 days, which is inclined to 97 degrees from the ecliptic. [11] It reached perihelion at a distance of 1.12 AU (168 million km) on 10 May 1930, and made its closest approach to Earth at a distance of 0.37 AU (55 million km) on June 21. Due to limited data acquired, it is unknown whether it remains bound to the Solar System or it was ejected into interstellar space. [4]
Comet Encke, or Encke's Comet, is a periodic comet that completes an orbit of the Sun once every 3.3 years. Encke was first recorded by Pierre Méchain on 17 January 1786, but it was not recognized as a periodic comet until 1819 when its orbit was computed by Johann Franz Encke. Like Halley's Comet, it is unusual in its being named after the calculator of its orbit rather than its discoverer. Like most comets, it has a very low albedo, reflecting only 4.6% of the light its nucleus receives, although comets generate a large coma and tail that can make them much more visible during their perihelion. The diameter of the nucleus of Encke's Comet is 4.8 km.
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The Great Comet of 1882, formally designated as C/1882 R1, 1882 II, and 1882b, was a comet which became very bright in September 1882. It was a member of the Kreutz Sungrazers, a family of comets which pass within 1 R☉ of the Sun's photosphere at perihelion.
Comet Morehouse (modern formal designation: C/1908 R1) was a bright, non-periodic comet discovered by US astronomer Daniel Walter Morehouse on September 1, 1908 (the discovery photograph was taken on September 1, but the comet was not noticed until the following day), at Yerkes Observatory in Williams Bay, Wisconsin. Morehouse was a graduate student at the time. It was unusual in the rapid variations seen in the structure of its tail. At times, the tail seemed to split into up to six separate tails; at others, the tail appeared completely detached from the head of the comet. The tail was further unusual in that it formed while the comet was still 2 AU away from the Sun (where distances of 1.5 AU are more usual), and that there was a high concentration of the CO+ ion in its spectrum.
Comet 4P/Faye is a periodic Jupiter-family comet discovered in November 1843 by Hervé Faye at the Royal Observatory in Paris. Its most recent perihelia were on November 15, 2006; May 29, 2014; and September 8, 2021.
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Comet 96P/Machholz or 96P/Machholz 1 is a short-period sungrazing comet discovered on May 12, 1986, by amateur astronomer Donald Machholz on Loma Prieta peak, in central California using 130 millimetres (5.1 in) binoculars. On June 6, 1986, 96P/Machholz passed 0.404 AU from the Earth. 96P/Machholz last came to perihelion on January 31, 2023. The comet has an estimated diameter of around 6.4 km (4.0 mi).
Ryves's Comet, also known as C/1931 P1, 1931 IV or 1931c, was discovered by Percy Mayow Ryves, an English amateur astronomer, on 10 August 1931. The comet passed perihelion on 25 August 1931 at a distance of 0.075 AU from the Sun.
C/1989 X1 (Austin) was a comet discovered by New Zealand amateur Rodney R. D. Austin on December 6, 1989. The comet at discovery was predicted to become easily visible by naked eye in spring 1990, however it failed to become that bright.
The Great Comet of 1901, sometimes known as Comet Viscara, formally designated C/1901 G1, was a comet which became bright in the spring of 1901. Visible exclusively from the southern hemisphere, it was discovered on the morning of April 12, 1901 as a naked-eye object of second magnitude with a short tail. On the day of perihelion passage, the comet's head was reported as deep yellowish in color, trailing a 10-degree tail. It was last seen by the naked eye on May 23.
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The Great Southern Comet of 1865, also known as C/1865 B1 by its modern nomenclature, was a non-periodic comet, which in 1865 was so bright that it was visible to unaided-eye observations in the Southern Hemisphere. The comet could not be seen from the Northern Hemisphere.
Comet van Gent–Peltier–Daimaca, formally designated as C/1943 W1, is a non-periodic comet with a rather peculiar discovery. It was independently discovered by four astronomers, however the established system of naming comets by the International Astronomical Union only recognizes the names of the first three people who observed it.
Comet C/2018 V1 (Machholz–Fujikawa–Iwamoto) is a minor body that follows a slightly hyperbolic orbit. It was visually discovered on 7 November 2018 by Donald Machholz using an 18.5-inch reflecting telescope and it reached perihelion on 3 December 2018.
Palisa's Comet, also known formally as C/1879 Q1 by its modern nomenclature, is a parabolic comet that was barely visible to the naked eye in late 1879. It was the only comet discovered by Austrian astronomer, Johann Palisa.
C/2021 O3 (PanSTARRS) is perhaps an Oort cloud comet, discovered on 26 July 2021 by the Pan-STARRS sky survey. It came to perihelion on 21 April 2022 at 0.287 AU (42.9 million km). from the Sun.
The Great Southern Comet of 1880, formally designated as C/1880 C1 in modern nomenclature, is a comet that became visible in the naked eye throughout the Southern hemisphere in February 1880. It is notable for being classified as a "great comet" not by its apparent magnitude, but by its prominent tail.
Comet Donati, formally designated as C/1855 L1, is a long-period comet that has an orbital period of approximately 252 years. It was the second comet discovered in 1855, and the first of five comets discovered by Italian astronomer, Giovanni Battista Donati.
Comet Dodwell–Forbes, formally designated as C/1932 Y1, is a long-period comet discovered independently by Alexander F. I. Forbes and George F. Dodwell in late 1932. It was Dodwell's only comet discovery, while it was Forbes's third overall.
Comet Rordame–Quénisset, also known as C/1893 N1 by its modern nomenclature, is a hyperbolic comet that was visible in the naked eye in 1893. It was discovered independently by Alfred Rordame and Ferdinand Quénisset, though several astronomers reportedly saw the comet days before their respective discoveries.