C/2012 J1 (Catalina)
| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Catalina Sky Survey
|
| Discovery site | Steward Observatory |
| Discovery date | 14 May 2012 |
| Orbital characteristics[2][3] | |
| Epoch | 16 November 2012 (JD 2456247.5) |
| Observation arc | 1.85 years |
| Earliest precovery date | 13 May 2012 |
| Number of observations | 4,405[4] |
| Aphelion | ~8,300 AU (inbound) |
| Perihelion | 3.159 AU |
| Semi-major axis | ~4,150 AU (inbound) |
| Eccentricity | 0.99924 (inbound) 1.00102 (outbound) |
| Orbital period | ~268,000 years (inbound) |
| Inclination | 34.186° |
| 235.22° | |
| Argument of periapsis | 147.27° |
| Last perihelion | 7 December 2012 |
| TJupiter | 1.824 |
| Earth MOID | 2.219 AU |
| Jupiter MOID | 1.382 AU |
| Physical characteristics[5] | |
Mean radius | 3.3 km (2.1 mi) |
| 0.04 (assumed) | |
| Comet total magnitude (M1) | 7.2 |
| Comet nuclear magnitude (M2) | 10.5[3] |
C/2012 J1 (Catalina) is a distant non-periodic comet that only came within 3.16 AU (473 million km) from the Sun during its perihelion in December 2012. It is one of several comets discovered by the Catalina Sky Survey.
Physical characteristics
Observations conducted between March 2013 and May 2014 recorded three outburst events that brightened the comet between 0.2 and 2.99 magnitudes temporarily.[5] Assuming a geometric albedo of 0.04, its nucleus is estimated to have an effective radius of around 3.3 km (2.1 mi).[5] Spectroscopic and polarimetric analysis of the comet had determined a gas production rate of around 3.7×1023 molecules per second during perihelion.[6]
References
- ^ A. R. Gibbs; P. Birtwhistle; H. Sato; R. Holmes; T. Vorobjov; et al. (May 2012). D. W. Green (ed.). "Comet C/2012 J1 (Catalina)". Central Bureau Electronic Telegrams. 3104. Bibcode:2012CBET.3104....1G.
- ^ "Barycentric Osculating Orbital Elements for Comet C/2012 J1 (Catalina) in epoch 1800 and 2200". JPL Horizons On-Line Ephemeris System. Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 25 October 2025. (Solution using the Solar System's barycenter (Sun+Jupiter). Select Ephemeris Type:Elements and Center:@0)
- ^ a b "C/2012 J1 (Catalina) – JPL Small-Body Database Lookup". ssd.jpl.nasa.gov. Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
- ^ "C/2012 J1 (Catalina) Orbit". Minor Planet Center. Retrieved 25 October 2025.
- ^ a b c A. S. Betzler; O. F. de Sousa (2023). "Photometric BVR observations of comet C/2012 J1 (Catalina) before and after perihelion". Astronomische Nachrichten. 344 (5). Bibcode:2023AN....34420084B. doi:10.1002/asna.20220084.
- ^ O. Ivanova; O. Shubina; A. Moiseev; V. Afanasiev (2015). "Polarimetric and spectroscopic observations of a dynamically new comet C/2012 J1 (Catalina)". Astrophysical Bulletin. 70 (3): 349–354. arXiv:1508.04926. Bibcode:2015AstBu..70..349I. doi:10.1134/S1990341315030141.
External links
- C/2012 J1 at the JPL Small-Body Database
- C/2012 J1 at Seiichi Yoshida's website