246P/NEAT
Periodic comet
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
246P/NEAT is a periodic comet discovered on 2004 March 28 by Near-Earth Asteroid Tracking (NEAT) using the 1.2 m (47 in) reflector at Haleakala.[1] It was given the permanent number 246P on 14 January 2011.[5]
Discoverydate28 March 2004
P/2004 F3, P/2010 V2
246P/NEAT as imaged by the Zwicky Transient Facility on 8 June 2021 | |
| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Near-Earth Asteroid Tracking (NEAT) |
| Discovery site | Haleakala Observatory |
| Discovery date | 28 March 2004 |
| Designations | |
| P/2004 F3, P/2010 V2 | |
| Orbital characteristics[2][3] | |
| Epoch | 17 October 2024 (JD 2460600.5) |
| Observation arc | 22.92 years |
| Earliest precovery date | 6 January 2002 |
| Number of observations | 5,007 |
| Aphelion | 5.245 AU |
| Perihelion | 3.164 AU |
| Semi-major axis | 4.204 AU |
| Eccentricity | 0.28504 |
| Orbital period | 8.62 years |
| Inclination | 17.751° |
| 74.231° | |
| Argument of periapsis | 185.43° |
| Mean anomaly | 156.59° |
| Last perihelion | 16 February 2021 |
| Next perihelion | 28 October 2029[4] |
| TJupiter | 2.913 |
| Earth MOID | 1.865 AU |
| Jupiter MOID | 0.096 AU |
| Comet total magnitude (M1) | 5.9 |
| Comet nuclear magnitude (M2) | 11.3 |
Orbit
It is a Quasi-Hilda comet.[6] Due to perturbations by Jupiter, the 2005, 2013 and 2021 perihelion passages will be closer to the Sun.[7] The comet is observable all through its orbit.[7]
