Electronic Telegram No. 4135
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/2015 P2 = P/2002 Q1 (VAN NESS)
     R. Wainscoat and R. Weryk reported the discovery of an object called a
"marginal comet" on images taken on Aug. 6.4 UT with the 1.8-m Pan-STARRS1
telescope at Haleakala.  G. V. Williams identified this as a possible
recovery of comet P/2002 Q1 (cf. IAUC 7956).  Subsequently, K. Sarneczky,
Konkoly Observatory, independently reported his recovery of comet P/2002 Q1
on unfiltered CCD exposures taken by A. Sodor with the 0.60-m Schmidt
telescope at the Piszkesteto Station of Konkoly Observatory on Aug. 10.9,
noting a 5" coma and a fan-shaped tail 10-12" long in p.a. about 95 deg in
eight stacked 150-s exposures.

     2015 UT             R.A. (2000) Decl.       Mag.   Observer
     Aug.  6.38648   18 14 33.78   +29 37 14.4   19.9   Pan-STARRS1
           6.41325   18 14 33.03   +29 36 45.1   19.6     "
           6.42681   18 14 32.67   +29 36 30.6   19.8     "
          10.87366   18 12 59.01   +28 11 54.3   19.5   Sodor
          10.87956   18 12 58.95   +28 11 47.0   18.8     "
          10.88546   18 12 58.81   +28 11 40.1   19.1     "

The indicated correction to the prediction by S. Nakano on MPC 79352 is
Delta(T) = +1.5 days.  The following linked orbital elements by G. V.
Williams are from 55 observations spanning 2002 Aug. 17-2015 Aug. 10 (mean
residual 0".6).  Other elements and an ephemeris appear on MPEC 2015-P24.

                    Epoch = 2009 Mar. 30.0 TT
     T = 2009 Mar. 21.70412 TT        Peri. = 185.01941
     e = 0.5640190                    Node  = 173.99677 2000.0
     q = 1.5511571 AU                 Incl. =  36.28088
       a =  3.5578553 AU   n = 0.14686613   P =   6.71 years

                    Epoch = 2015 Dec.  4.0 TT
     T = 2015 Dec. 12.40169 TT        Peri. = 185.09205
     e = 0.5625637                    Node  = 173.96038 2000.0
     q = 1.5602665 AU                 Incl. =  36.21332
       a =  3.5668425 AU   n = 0.14631141   P =   6.74 years



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      superseded by text appearing later in the printed IAU Circulars.

                         (C) Copyright 2015 CBAT
2015 August 11                   (CBET 4135)              Daniel W. E. Green