[meteorite-list] List member discovers new comet

[Robert Verish]

http://ares.nrl.navy.mil/sungrazer/latest_news.html

Has this been posted to the List, yet?
Apologies if it has, but I don't think so.  It's not
everyday that a List member discovers a comet.

As many of you know, List member, Rob Matson, is a
very determined meteorite hunter, asteroid finder, and
comet discover.  Rob's latest comet discovery is more
a result of determination than it is of luck.

Here is the story in Rob's own words:

http://ares.nrl.navy.mil/sungrazer/latest_news.html
(Scroll down to October 23, 2005.)
  
--Bob V.

-----Original Message-----
From: bolidechaser at yahoo.com 
Sent: Thursday, October 27, 2005 2:26 PM
To: Matson, Robert
Subject: New comet

Hello Rob,

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

Your discovery is a case study in perseverance.
Way to hang in there.
Bob V.

-------------------------------------------------
From: "Matson, Robert" <ROBERT.D.MATSON at saic.com>    
To: "'bolidechaser at yahoo.com'" 
Date: Thu, 27 Oct 2005 14:39:46 -0700 

Subject: RE: New comet 
    
Hi Bob,

Thanks!  I always wanted to add a SWAN comet to my
discovery list -- especially since they're 150 times
as rare as a SOHO comet [7 SWAN vs. 1031 (non-SWAN)
SOHO].  
  There's a more detailed story with the confirmation
comet images from LPL and Siding Spring posted
on the SOHO sungrazer website:

http://ares.nrl.navy.mil/sungrazer/latest_news.html

Scroll down to October 23, 2005.  
--Rob

> 
> The IAU Circular came out over the weekend: 
> 
>                                                 
> Circular No. 8619
> Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams
> INTERNATIONAL ASTRONOMICAL UNION
> Mailstop 18, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory,
> Cambridge, MA 02138,  U.S.A.
> IAUSUBS at CFA.HARVARD.EDU or FAX 617-495-7231
> (subscriptions)
> CBAT at CFA.HARVARD.EDU (science)
> URL http://cfa-www.harvard.edu/iau/cbat.html  
> ISSN 0081-0304
> Phone 617-495-7440/7244/7444 (emergency use only)
> 
> COMET C/2005 T4 (SWAN)
>      R. D. Matson, Newport Coast, California; 
> and M. Mattiazzo, Wallaroo, South Australia, have 
> independently reported the presence of a comet in 
> SOHO SWAN images during the first half of October
> (the object appearing rather faint in the
> ultraviolet images).  
> The SWAN positions below are from Matson.  
> E. J. Christensen reports that Catalina Sky Survey 
> (0.68-m Schmidt telescope) images on Oct. 22.1 UT 
> show a moderately condensed, roughly circular coma 
> of diameter about 2' in three coadded 20-second
> exposures.  
> R. H. McNaught, observing with the 1.0-m f/8 
> reflector at Siding Spring Observatory on Oct 22.4, 
> reports a diffuse 1' coma with a 3" (FWHM)
> central condensation (used for the magnitude 
> estimates below).  
> J. E. McGaha (Tucson, Arizona, 0.62-m f/5.1 
> reflector) reports that his images on Oct. 23.1 
> show a fan-shaped coma of size 20" x 30" toward 
> p.a. 120 deg.  
> A. Hale (Cloudcroft, New Mexico, 0.41-m reflector) 
> writes that a visual observation on Oct. 23.08 
> showed a diffuse coma of diameter 1'.5 and total 
> mag 12.1.
> 
>      2005 UT     R.A. (2000) Decl.   Mag.   Observer
>      Oct.  6         15 00.7       - 0 20   SWAN
>            9         15 29.2       - 3 28    "
>           11         15 47.9       - 5 10    "
>           13         16 06.9       - 6 43    "
>Oct 22.06892 16 27 47.50 - 9 13 25.2 12.4 Christensen
>    22.07064 16 27 47.68 - 9 13 27.0          "
>    22.07230 16 27 47.91 - 9 13 28.7          "
>    22.39354 16 28 24.32 - 9 17 53.4 18.1  McNaught
>    22.39504 16 28 24.50 - 9 17 55.1 18.0     "
>    22.39654 16 28 24.67 - 9 17 56.3 18.0     "
>    22.39809 16 28 24.83 - 9 17 57.4 17.9     "
>    22.39960 16 28 24.99 - 9 17 58.8 17.9     "
>    22.40110 16 28 25.18 - 9 18 00.0 17.7     "
> 
>      Additional precise positions, the following 
> preliminary parabolic orbital elements by B. G. 
> Marsden (from 12 precise positions, Oct. 22-23), 
> and an ephemeris appear on MPEC 2005-U19:
> 
>      T = 2005 Oct.  9.602 TT    Peri. = 40.696
>  Node  = 25.945   2000.0            q = 0.64699AU  
>  Incl. = 160.126
> 
>                       (C) Copyright 2005 CBAT
>