 Comet LINEAR photographed from Mount Laguna, California on 11 July 2007 | |
| Discovery | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | LINEAR |
| Discovery date | 13 November 2006 |
| Orbital characteristics | |
| Epoch | 13 June 2007 (JD 2454264.5) |
| Observation arc | 274 days |
| Number of observations | 1,025 |
| Perihelion | 1.0152 AU |
| Eccentricity | 1.000249 |
| Inclination | 134.793° |
| Longitude of ascending node | 66.0269° |
| Argument of periapsis | 174.115° |
| Last perihelion | 10 August 2007 |
| Earth MOID | 0.0047 AU |
| Jupiter MOID | 2.8204 AU |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Comet total magnitude (M1) | 13.9 |
| Apparent magnitude | 7.5 (2007 apparition) |
C/2006 VZ13 (LINEAR) is a non-periodic comet discovered by the LINEAR survey on 13 November 2006.
Discovery and observations
The object was initially believed to be an asteroid due to its stellar appearance in the early images. However, observers soon detected a small coma and the telltale green cometary cast.
The comet peaked at approximately magnitude +7.5, much brighter than predicted. The comet made Earth approach on July 14, 2007 at a distance of 0.575 AU. Perihelion was August 10, 2007 at a distance of 1.015 AU.
References
- "C/2006 VZ13 (LINEAR) – JPL Small-Body Database Lookup". ssd.jpl.nasa.gov. Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
- S. Yoshida. "C/2006 VZ13 (LINEAR)". www.aerith.net. Retrieved 13 July 2007.
- T. Flanders (10 July 2007). "Comet LINEAR Graces the Northern Sky". Sky & Telescope. Archived from the original on 1 October 2011. Retrieved 12 July 2007.
External links
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