ngcles
01-03-2023, 02:14 PM
Hi All,
New **potentially** naked eye comet for 2024 announced.
M.P.E.C. 2023-D77 issued 28th February 2023 announces the discovery and designation of a new cometary object: C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) (Previously designated A10SVYR).
The first part of the name apparently derives from Mandarin and translates roughly to "purple mountain".
The current provisional orbital elements are contained in the MPEC.
C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS)
Epoch 2023 Feb. 25.0 TT = JDT 2460000.5
T 2024 Sept. 28.55963 TT Rudenko
q 0.3904059 (2000.0) P Q
z +0.0006401 Peri. 308.59081 +0.36275685 +0.90020587
+/-0.0030246 Node 21.58224 +0.91805884 -0.30086181
e 0.9997501 Incl. 139.08539 -0.15992321 +0.31481988
Here is a recent portrait by Rolando Ligustri Chile, ITelescope, Taka 180ED f2,8 ccd ASI2600MM L=5x180sec at 08:30 TU field of 15'x15'.
Comment: This is *potentially* a naked-eye comet and **possibly** even a bright naked eye comet that reaches perihelion on 28th September 2024. Given that the new comet is currently at magnitude +17.5 but is about half-way between Jupiter and Saturn, it is *possibly* a large cometary object and the perihelion distance is around the Mercury-Sun distance (0.39 AU). It is presently in Serpens not far from the bright globular cluster Messier 5.
There remains a possibility the current magnitude is inflated by it being presently in some sort of outburst, but this seems unlikely given how far it is from the sun at present. It is therefore quite possibly a relatively large (physically) cometary object whcih increases the chance of it becoming genuinely bright.
I don't want to get too over the top about this because comets have a way of defying everybody's expectations. This comet has the potential to become quite bright (ie visible naked-eye) and potentially a very bright object in the pre-dawn pre-perihelion sky and then for southern observers, for a number of days in the evening sky post-perihelion. The comet passes almost exactly between Earth and Sun in early October 2024 (at a very, very comfortable ~75 million km distance-- no chance of collision) so the back-scattering effect is likely to be very high **potentially** heightening the visibility of any tail.
As all astronomers well know, comets often have a way of disappointing or failing in their promise (or even disintegrating). But at this point in time, this one shows a lot of promise.
We can't really speculate further about this, that or the other because anything further would be almost pure speculation, This object has the potential to be a bright naked-eye comet, end of story at the moment.
Additional cynical comment: The English translation of the name will undoubtedly be seized on by the mainstream media and this will become the "Purple Mountain Comet" -- you watch.
Best,
L.
New **potentially** naked eye comet for 2024 announced.
M.P.E.C. 2023-D77 issued 28th February 2023 announces the discovery and designation of a new cometary object: C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) (Previously designated A10SVYR).
The first part of the name apparently derives from Mandarin and translates roughly to "purple mountain".
The current provisional orbital elements are contained in the MPEC.
C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS)
Epoch 2023 Feb. 25.0 TT = JDT 2460000.5
T 2024 Sept. 28.55963 TT Rudenko
q 0.3904059 (2000.0) P Q
z +0.0006401 Peri. 308.59081 +0.36275685 +0.90020587
+/-0.0030246 Node 21.58224 +0.91805884 -0.30086181
e 0.9997501 Incl. 139.08539 -0.15992321 +0.31481988
Here is a recent portrait by Rolando Ligustri Chile, ITelescope, Taka 180ED f2,8 ccd ASI2600MM L=5x180sec at 08:30 TU field of 15'x15'.
Comment: This is *potentially* a naked-eye comet and **possibly** even a bright naked eye comet that reaches perihelion on 28th September 2024. Given that the new comet is currently at magnitude +17.5 but is about half-way between Jupiter and Saturn, it is *possibly* a large cometary object and the perihelion distance is around the Mercury-Sun distance (0.39 AU). It is presently in Serpens not far from the bright globular cluster Messier 5.
There remains a possibility the current magnitude is inflated by it being presently in some sort of outburst, but this seems unlikely given how far it is from the sun at present. It is therefore quite possibly a relatively large (physically) cometary object whcih increases the chance of it becoming genuinely bright.
I don't want to get too over the top about this because comets have a way of defying everybody's expectations. This comet has the potential to become quite bright (ie visible naked-eye) and potentially a very bright object in the pre-dawn pre-perihelion sky and then for southern observers, for a number of days in the evening sky post-perihelion. The comet passes almost exactly between Earth and Sun in early October 2024 (at a very, very comfortable ~75 million km distance-- no chance of collision) so the back-scattering effect is likely to be very high **potentially** heightening the visibility of any tail.
As all astronomers well know, comets often have a way of disappointing or failing in their promise (or even disintegrating). But at this point in time, this one shows a lot of promise.
We can't really speculate further about this, that or the other because anything further would be almost pure speculation, This object has the potential to be a bright naked-eye comet, end of story at the moment.
Additional cynical comment: The English translation of the name will undoubtedly be seized on by the mainstream media and this will become the "Purple Mountain Comet" -- you watch.
Best,
L.