Comets in Need of Photometry
The following comets are in great need of observation, both photometric and astrometric -- some having not been observed to our knowledge in quite some time (despite predictions placing them brighter than total magnitude 21), while others have been observed well astrometrically but either (a) very poorly photometrically or (b) the light curve is uncertain (or developing strangely), so that careful total-magnitude photometry is very much desired. Observers are encouraged to send both photometry and astrometry to icq@cfa.harvard.edu (with copies of all astrometry *also* to mpc@cfa.harvard.edu).
Even negative observations (where the comet was not detected) are highly useful and should be reported; such reports should include the date (decimal date UT), the limiting stellar magnitude (with bandpass), full instrumentation details (including exposure duration), the amount of sky covered on each side of the line-of-variation (with reference given to where the utilized orbital elements and/or ephemeris were published, along with mention as to whether a "perturbed" ephemeris was used or not).
Comets in need of astrometry and total-magnitude photometry:
- C/2006 K3 (total mag predicted to be around 19-21 throughout 2008)
- C/2002 L9 (total mag predicted to be around 19-21 throughout 2008)
- C/1999 F1 (total mag predicted to be in the range 20-20.5 into early 2009)
- 166P (total mag predicted to be in the range 20-20.5 into early 2009)
- C/2007 E2 (total mag predicted to be around 20-21 until Feb. 2009)
- C/2004 L2 (total mag predicted to be around 20-21 until March 2009)
- C/2003 K4 (total mag predicted to be around 18.5-20 until May 2009)
- C/2004 B1 (total mag predicted to be around 19.5-20.5 until May 2009)
- P/2005 L1 (total mag predicted to be around 19-20 until May 2009)
- P/2005 RV_25 (total mag predicted to be around 18.5-19.5 until May 2009)
- P/2005 S2 (total mag predicted to be around 19.5-20 until May 2009)
- C/2005 R4 (total mag predicted to be around 19.5-21 until May 2009)
- C/2006 E1 (total mag predicted to be around 19-21 until May 2009)
- P/2006 Y1 = P/1999 DN_3 (total mag predicted to be in the range 17-20 until Sept. 2010)
- 180P (total mag predicted to be in the range 16-21 until Oct. 2010)
- P/1999 XN_120 (total mag predicted to be in the range 16-19.5 until Oct. 2011)
The following comets are not in need of astrometry so much as they are in need of total-magnitude photometry and morphological measurements (coma diameter, tail length and p.a.):
- 159P (total mag predicted to be in the range 20-21 into mid-2008)
- C/1995 O1 (total mag predicted to be around mag 20 into early 2009)
- 129P (total mag predicted to be around mag 19-20 into mid-2009)
- C/1999 F1 (total mag predicted to be in the range 19-21 from late 2006 into 2010)
- C/2004 T3 (total mag predicted to be in the range 18-21 into 2010)
[last updated 9/8/08]
