Comet Leonard's show and other comet photos

With just a few hours to go before the end of 2021, while the comet C/2021 A1 (Leonard) show is still going on, one last post of the year to thank all the readers of this blog. See you again in 2022, with the hope that there will be clear skies for everyone. According to M. Meyer, 2021 had 68 new comets (2020: 76, 2019: 64) of which 4 were amateur discoveries (2020: 5, 2019: 2). Top 3: PANSTARRS: 23; Mt. Lemmon/Catalina: 13/4; ATLAS: 8. Here's a short roundup of cometary photos starting with the most beautiful comet of 2021 and probably one of the best in recent years. (Click on each image below for a bigger version). 

COMET C/2021 A1 (Leonard) imaged on December 28, 2021 by Ernesto Guido, Marco Rocchetto & Adriano Valvasori via Telescope Live network (MPC code Q56, Australia).

Credit: E. Guido, M. Rocchetto, A. Valvasori

COMET C/2021 A1 (Leonard) imaged on December 31, 2021 by Ernesto Guido, Marco Rocchetto & Adriano Valvasori via Telescope Live network (MPC code Q56, Australia).

Credit: E. Guido, M. Rocchetto, A. Valvasori

COMET 108P/Ciffreo imaged on December 14, 2021 by Ernesto Guido, Marco Rocchetto & Adriano Valvasori through a 0.7 m f/8 Ritchey Chretien + CCD via Telescope Live network (MPC code Z08, Oria, Spain).

Credit: E. Guido, M. Rocchetto, A. Valvasori, E. Bryssinck

COMET C/2019 L3 (Atlas) imaged on December 13, 2021 by Adriano Valvasori & Ernesto Guido via ALMO observatory (MPC code G18, Italy).

COMET 67P (Churyumov–Gerasimenko) imaged on December 12, 2021 by Adriano Valvasori & Ernesto Guido via ALMO observatory (MPC code G18, Italy).

COMET C/2021 A1 (Leonard) imaged on November 30, 2021 by Adriano Valvasori & Ernesto Guido via ALMO observatory (MPC code G18, Italy).

COMET 29P (Schwassmann–Wachmann) imaged on October 11, 2021 by Adriano Valvasori & Ernesto Guido via ALMO observatory (MPC code G18, Italy).

COMET 4P (Faye) imaged on October 03, 2021 by Adriano Valvasori & Ernesto Guido via ALMO observatory (MPC code G18, Italy).

by Ernesto Guido

New Comet P/2021 U3 (Attard-Maury)

CBET 5064 & MPEC 2021-V21, issued on 2021, November 02, announce the discovery of a new comet (magnitude ~19)  by A. Maury and G. Attard on CCD images taken on October 24.3 UT  with the 0.28-m f/2.2 Rowe-Ackermann Schmidt astrograph at San Pedro de Atacama, Chile in the course of the  MAP (W94) survey.  The new comet has been designated P/2021 U3 (Attard-Maury). This is the 4th amateur comet discovery of 2021. It is also the second comet discovered using the synthetic tracking technique (using TYCHO software).

Stacking of 51 unfiltered exposures, 60 seconds each, obtained remotely on 2021, Oct. 27.3 from X02 (Telescope Live, Chile) through a 0.61-m f/6.5 astrograph + CCD, shows that this object is a comet with a compact coma about 6" arcsecond in diameter and a tail 6" long in PA 275 (Observers E. Guido, M. Rocchetto, E. Bryssinck, M. Fulle, G. Milani, C. Nassef, G. Savini, A. Valvasori).

Stacking of 66 unfiltered exposures, 60 seconds each, obtained remotely on 2021, Oct. 29.9 from G18  (ALMO Observatory, Italy) through a 0.30-m f/4 reflector + CCD, shows that this object is a comet with a compact coma about 5" arcsec in diameter and a tail 6" long in PA 270 (Observers A. Valvasori & E. Guido).

Our confirmation images (click on the images for a bigger version; made with TYCHO software by D. Parrott)

 

MPEC 2021-V21, assigns the following preliminary elliptical orbital elements to comet  P/2021 U3 (Attard-Maury): T 2021 Oct. 25.43; e= 0.55; Peri. =  335.48; q = 1.88 ;  Incl.= 70.05.

According to CBET 5064 "the comet passed 0.59 AU from Jupiter in 1983 October (though the orbital period is uncertain by well over a month). A search for earlier observations in archival astrometry produced nothing".

 

Credit: MPC

by Ernesto Guido

New Comet P/2021 Q5 (ATLAS)

CBET 5029 & MPEC 2021-R98 , issued on 2021, September 06, announce the discovery of a new comet (magnitude ~17) on CCD images taken on August 29.6 UT with a 0.5-m f/2 Schmidt reflector at Haleakala, Hawaii, in the course of the "Asteroid Terrestrial-Impact Last Alert System" (ATLAS) search program. The new comet has been designated P/2021 Q5 (ATLAS). 

Stacking of 58 unfiltered exposures, 30 seconds each, obtained remotely on 2021, September 03.1 from G18  (ALMO Observatory, Italy) through a 0.30-m f/4 reflector + CCD, shows that this object is a comet with a compact coma about 8" arcsec in diameter and a tail 10" long in PA 270 (Observers A. Valvasori & E. Guido).

Our confirmation image (click on the images for a bigger version; made with TYCHO software by D. Parrott)

MPEC 2021-R98, assigns the following preliminary orbital elements to comet  P/2021 Q5 (ATLAS): T 2021 August 30.34; e= 0.61; Peri. =  180.81; q = 1.23 ;  Incl.= 10.72. 

Credit: MPC

by Ernesto Guido

New Comet C/2021 Q4 (Fuls)

CBET 5028 & MPEC 2021-Q102, issued on 2021, August 31 & September 02, announce the discovery of a new comet (magnitude ~20) on CCD images taken on August 26.2 UT with the Mt. Lemmon Survey (G96) 1.5-m reflector. The new comet has been designated C/2021 Q4 (Fuls). 

Stacking of 30 unfiltered exposures, 120 seconds each, obtained remotely on 2021, August 29.9 from Z08 (Telescope Live, Oria) through a 0.7 m f/8 Ritchey Chretien + CCD, shows that this object is a comet with a compact coma about 8" arcsec in diameter elongated toward PA 275 (Observers E. Guido, M. Rocchetto, E. Bryssinck, M. Fulle, G. Milani, C. Nassef, G. Savini, A. Valvasori).

Our confirmation image (click on the images for a bigger version; made with TYCHO software by D. Parrott)

MPEC 2021-Q102, assigns the following preliminary orbital elements to comet C/2021 Q4 (Fuls): T 2023 June 10.66; e= 1.0030276; Peri. =  147.01; q = 7.56 ;  Incl.= 71.47. The comet will pass 2.45 AU from Saturn on 2025 Apr. 30 UT.

Credit: MPC

by Ernesto Guido

New Comet C/2021 O3 (PANSTARRS)

CBET 5009 & MPEC 2021-P05, issued on 2021, August 01, announce the discovery of a new comet (magnitude ~20) on CCD images taken on July 26.5 UT with the Pan-STARRS1 1.8-m Ritchey-Chretien reflector at Haleakala. The new comet has been designated C/2021 O3 (PANSTARRS). 

Stacking of 15 unfiltered exposures, 240 seconds each, obtained remotely on 2021, July 30.3 from X02 (Telescope Live, Chile) through a 0.61-m f/6.5 astrograph + CCD, shows that this object is a comet with a compact coma about 8" arcsecond in diameter (Observers E. Guido, M. Rocchetto, E. Bryssinck, M. Fulle, G. Milani, C. Nassef, G. Savini, A. Valvasori).

Our confirmation image (click on the images for a bigger version; made with TYCHO software by D. Parrott)

MPEC 2021-P05, assigns the following preliminary orbital elements to comet C/2021 O3 (PANSTARRS): T 2022 Apr. 20.49; e= 1.0; Peri. =  299.88; q = 0.28 ;  Incl.= 56.72

Credit: MPC

This comet could become visible to the naked eye in 2022, reaching magnitude ~5. Below you can see a graph generated using the software Orbitas and showing the predicted magnitude (in red) versus its elongation from the Sun. Anyway, as always with comets, the future magnitudes reported here are only indicative. 

By Ernesto Guido

New Comet C/2021 N3 (PANSTARRS)

CBET 5003 & MPEC 2021-O39, issued on 2021, July 22, announce the discovery of a new comet (magnitude ~20.5) on CCD images taken on July 13.5 UT with the Pan-STARRS1 1.8-m Ritchey-Chretien reflector at Haleakala (numerous pre-discovery observations going back an additional month were later identified). The new comet has been designated C/2021 N3 (PANSTARRS). 

Stacking of 16 unfiltered exposures, 180 seconds each, obtained remotely on 2021, July 14.3 from X02 (Telescope Live, Chile) through a 0.61-m f/6.5 astrograph + CCD, shows that this object is a comet with a compact coma about 9" arcsecond in diameter elongated toward PA 230 (Observers E. Guido, M. Rocchetto, E. Bryssinck, M. Fulle, G. Milani, C. Nassef, G. Savini, A. Valvasori).

Our confirmation image (click on the images for a bigger version; made with TYCHO software by D. Parrott)

MPEC 2021-O39, assigns the following preliminary orbital elements to comet C/2021 N3 (PANSTARRS): T 2020 Aug. 13.96; e= 0.96; Peri. =  303.99; q = 5.69 ;  Incl.= 26.67

Credit: MPC

by Ernesto Guido

New Comet P/2021 N2 (Fuls)

CBET 5000 & MPEC 2021-N137, issued on 2021, July 15, announce the discovery of a new comet (magnitude ~18.3) on CCD images taken on July 09.4 UT with the Catalina Sky Survey's 0.68-m Schmidt reflector (pre-discovery Catalina observations from June 27 were identified later). The new comet has been designated  P/2021 N2 (Fuls). 

Stacking of 28 unfiltered exposures, 60 seconds each, obtained remotely on 2021, July 10.1 from Z08 (Telescope Live, Oria) through a 0.7 m f/8 Ritchey Chretien + CCD, shows that this object is a comet with a compact coma about 8" arcsec in diameter and a tail 10" long in PA 250 (Observers E. Guido, M. Rocchetto, E. Bryssinck, M. Fulle, G. Milani, C. Nassef, G. Savini, A. Valvasori).

Our confirmation image (click on the images for a bigger version; made with TYCHO software by D. Parrott)

MPEC 2021-N137, assigns the following preliminary elliptical orbital elements to comet P/2021 N2 (Fuls): T 2021 Oct. 28.30; e= 0.47; Peri. =  174.65; q = 3.82 ;  Incl.= 12.99

Credit: MPC

by Ernesto Guido