C/1739 K1 (Zanotti)
| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Eustachio Zanotti |
| Discovery site | Bologna, Italy |
| Discovery date | 28 May 1739 |
| Orbital characteristics[2] | |
| Epoch | 17 June 1739 (JD 2356384.416) |
| Observation arc | 82 days |
| Perihelion | 0.674 AU |
| Eccentricity | ~1.000 |
| Inclination | 121.260° |
| 211.044° | |
| Argument of periapsis | 104.752° |
| Last perihelion | 17 June 1739 |
| Physical characteristics[3] | |
| 3.3 (1739 apparition) | |
C/1739 K1 is a non-periodic comet that was discovered by Italian astronomer Eustachio Zanotti in 1739.[1] It is the parent body of the Leo Minorids meteor shower.[4]
Observational history
[edit]Zanotti spotted the comet in the constellation of Lynx on 27 May. He described it as a magnitude 3 star surrounded by nebulosity, while a tail 2 degrees long was spotted using a telescope. Zanotti followed the comet with the naked eye until 17 August, when it was only visible via a telescope. He last observed the comet the next day. It was also observed by James Bradley from 30 May to 10 June and Fuhrmann from June 8 to June 19.[3]
The parabolic orbit calculated by Nicolas-Louis de Lacaille indicates it passed perihelion on 17.9 June. The comet had passed at a distance of 0.45 AU on 16 April 1739.[3] The comet has a minimum orbital intersection distance with Earth of 0.049 AU and has been associated with the Leo Minorids meteor shower.[5]
References
[edit]- ^ a b E. Zanotti (1739). "XV. The parabolic orbit for the comet of 1739. Observed by Signor Eustachio Zanotti at Bologna". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. 41 (452): 809. doi:10.1098/rstl.1739.0145. ISSN 0261-0523. JSTOR 104378. S2CID 186214215.
- ^ "C/1739 K1 – JPL Small-Body Database Lookup". ssd.jpl.nasa.gov. Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
- ^ a b c G. W. Kronk; M. Meyer; D. A. J. Seargent (1999). Cometography: A Catalog of Comets. Vol. 1: Ancient–1799. Cambridge University Press. pp. 402–403. ISBN 978-0-521-58504-0.
- ^ P. M. Jenniskens; D. S. Lauretta; M. C. Towner; S. Heathcote; E. Jehin; et al. (2021). "Meteor showers from known long-period comets". Icarus. 365 (114469). doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2021.114469. ISSN 0019-1035.
- ^ P. M. Jenniskens (2006). Meteor Showers and their Parent Comets. Cambridge University Press. p. 82. ISBN 978-1-316-25710-4.
External links
[edit]- C/1739 K1 at the JPL Small-Body Database
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