Electronic Telegram No. 3000
Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams
INTERNATIONAL ASTRONOMICAL UNION
CBAT Director:  Daniel W. E. Green; Hoffman Lab 209; Harvard University;
 20 Oxford St.; Cambridge, MA  02138; U.S.A.
e-mail:  cbatiau@eps.harvard.edu (alternate cbat@iau.org)
URL http://www.cbat.eps.harvard.edu/index.html
Prepared using the Tamkin Foundation Computer Network


COMET P/2012 B2 (LINEAR)
     H. Sato reports the recovery of comet P/2003 HT_15 (cf. IAUC 8156)
on CCD images taken by T. Seki, S. Shimomoto, and himself with a 0.70-m
f/7 reflector at Geisei, Japan (astrometry tabulated below).  The comet
appears moderately concentrated with a coma of diameter 7" and no tail.
(though the coma seems extended slightly to the southwest on Jan. 26).

     2012 UT             R.A. (2000) Decl.       Mag.   Observer
     Jan. 26.53281    7 51 21.17   +43 10 54.1          Seki
          26.55382    7 51 19.88   +43 11 01.8            "
          26.57483    7 51 18.63   +43 11 07.6   19.8     "
          27.47301    7 50 28.98   +43 15 39.3            "
          27.48701    7 50 28.24   +43 15 42.5            "
          27.49402    7 50 27.88   +43 15 43.9   19.0     "

The indicated correction to the prediction by S. Nakano in the 2011/2012
Comet Handbook is Delta(T) = +0.28 day.  The following orbital elements by
G. V. Williams are from 48 observations spanning 2003 Jan. 27-2012 Jan. 27:

                    Epoch = 2003 May   1.0 TT
     T = 2003 Apr. 17.74527 TT        Peri. = 124.05670
     e = 0.4198836                    Node  =  81.47217 2000.0
     q = 2.6715043 AU                 Incl. =  27.67042
       a =  4.6051177 AU   n = 0.09973394   P =   9.882 years

                    Epoch = 2013 Mar.  9.0 TT
     T = 2013 Mar. 17.35282 TT        Peri. = 124.11294
     e = 0.4187859                    Node  =  81.44658 2000.0
     q = 2.6899128 AU                 Incl. =  27.63669
       a =  4.6280931 AU   n = 0.09899219   P =   9.956 years


NOTE: These 'Central Bureau Electronic Telegrams' are sometimes
      superseded by text appearing later in the printed IAU Circulars.

                         (C) Copyright 2012 CBAT
2012 January 29                  (CBET 3000)              Daniel W. E. Green