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IAUC 9040: 2002 VF_130; P/2009 H2

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IAUC number 

                                                  Circular No. 9040
Central Bureau for Astronomical Telegrams
INTERNATIONAL ASTRONOMICAL UNION
Mailstop 18, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, Cambridge, MA 02138, U.S.A.
IAUSUBS@CFA.HARVARD.EDU or FAX 617-495-7231 (subscriptions)
CBAT@CFA.HARVARD.EDU (science)
URL http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/iau/cbat.html  ISSN 0081-0304
Phone 617-495-7440/7244/7444 (for emergency use only)


2002 VF_130
     K. S. Noll and S. D. Benecchi, Space Telescope Science
Institute; and W. M. Grundy, Lowell Observatory, report the
detection of a binary companion to the transneptunian object 2002
VF_130 (MPEC 2002-W30, 2004-V71).  The observations were made
during 2008 Nov. 3.8076-3.8396 UT with the Wide Field Planetary
Camera 2 on the Hubble Space Telescope, using the F606W filter
(wide V) for four dithered 260-s exposures.  The two components
were widely separated, with an angular distance of 0".733 +/-
0".003.  The secondary binary component was fainter by 0.31
magnitude.  The secondary was located at -0".576 +/- 0".003 in R.A.
and 0".453 +/- 0".001 in Decl. relative to the primary.


COMET P/2009 H2 (McNAUGHT)
     Automatic procedures at the Minor Planet Center identified
comet P/2004 K2 (cf. IAUC 8348) in incidental astrometry obtained
by T. H. Bressi with the Spacewatch 0.9-m f/3 reflector on Apr. 28.
Subsequently, recovery observations were independently reported by
G. Muler, J. M. Ruiz, and R. Naves with the 0.30-m Schmidt-
Cassegrain telescope at the Observatorio Nazaret (Lanzarate, Spain)
on May 1 and 3.  No information was provided about the comet's
appearance.  The first observation of each set is provided below:

     2009 UT             R.A. (2000) Decl.       Mag.   Observer
     Apr. 28.36557   16 03 06.17   - 7 33 49.0          Spacewatch
     May   1.04433   16 01 23.07   - 7 18 04.3   20.2   Muler
           3.05734   15 59 59.04   - 7 06 17.5   20.0     "

     The indicated correction to the predictions on MPC 56805 and
in the 2008/2009 Comet Handbook is Delta(T) = -0.08 day.  The
remaining astrometry and the following (and additional) orbital
elements from 155 observations spanning 2004 May 20-2009 May
3, together with residuals and an ephemeris, appear on CBET 1790.

                    Epoch = 2010 Jan.  4.0 TT
     T = 2009 Dec. 15.4321 TT         Peri. = 180.7575
     e = 0.502681                     Node  = 150.1181  2000.0
     q = 1.548625 AU                  Incl. =   8.1327
       a =  3.113947 AU    n = 0.1793648    P =   5.495 years

                      (C) Copyright 2009 CBAT
2009 May 3                     (9040)            Daniel W. E. Green

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