Electronic Telegram No. 4259
Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams
Mailing address:  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


POSSIBLE METEOR ACTIVITY FROM COMET P/2016 BA14
     Further to CBET 4257, comet P/2016 BA14 will pass within about 0.024 AU
of the earth on Mar. 23, and comet 252P will pass about 0.0357 AU from the
earth on Mar. 21-22.  Assuming no unusual brightness variations, each object
may approach total visual magnitude 12 around closest approach.  G. V.
Williams notes that the closest approach of comet 252P to Jupiter since
1899 was in 1987 at a distance of 0.26 AU.
     Quan-Zhi Ye, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Western
Ontario, writes that, with the help of a meteoroid trail model, the evolution
of possible meteoroids ejected from P/2016 BA14 since 1750 AD has been
examined, but no trail encounter is found for 2016.  However, it is possible
that older meteoroid trails from this object are still capable of producing
meteor activity, so observers should be on alert.  Possible meteors would
radiate from geocentric radiant R.A. = 5h.5 (82 deg), Decl. = -39 deg
(equinox J2000.0), with geocentric velocity 14.1 km/s.  The most probable
time for meteor activity would be around the late hours of 2016 Mar. 20 UT.


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      superseded by text appearing later in the printed IAU Circulars.

                         (C) Copyright 2016 CBAT
2016 February 16                 (CBET 4259)              Daniel W. E. Green