[IAUC] CBET 3682: 20131030 : COMET C/2013 U1 (CATALINA)

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                                                  Electronic Telegram No. 3682
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 en eps.harvard.edu (alternate cbat en iau.org)
URL http://www.cbat.eps.harvard.edu/index.html
Prepared using the Tamkin Foundation Computer Network


COMET C/2013 U1 (CATALINA)
     An apparently asteroidal object found on CCD images taken by J. A. Johnson
in the course of the Catalina Sky Survey (discovery observations tabulated
below), and posted on the Minor Planet Center's NEOCP webpage, has been found
to show cometary appearance by CCD astrometrists elsewhere (after which time,
it was moved to the MPC's new "Possible Comet Confirmation Page", whose website
URL is http://www.minorplanetcenter.net/iau/NEO/pccp_tabular.html).  H. Sato
(Tokyo, Japan; remotely using a 0.32-m f/8 astrograph located at the RAS
Observatory near Nerpio, Spain) found a strongly condensed, compact coma of
diameter 6" with a narrow tail 30" long toward p.a. 325 degrees in ten stacked
60-s exposures taken on Oct. 23.8 UT; ten stacked 60-s follow-up images taken
on Oct. 24.1 (remotely with a 0.51-m f/6.8 astrograph + luminance filter at
the iTelescope site near Mayhill, NM, U.S.A.) show a strongly condensed,
diffuse coma of diameter 12" in diameter of total mag 18.1 as measured within
a circular aperure radius of 7".6.  R. Ligustri (Talmassons, Udine, Italy;
remotely with an iTelescope 0.43-m f/4.5 reflector near Mayhill) notes a coma
of size about 12" and mag 18.1 on Oct. 25.1.  J. V. Scotti writes that his
exposures taken with the Spacewatch 1.8-m f/2.7 reflector at Kitt Peak on
Oct. 28.15-28.17 show the comet to be diffuse with a symmetric coma
of diameter 19" and no obvious tail.  L. Buzzi reports that images taken
with the 2.0-m "Faulkes Telescope South" (+ Bessell R filter) at Siding Spring
on Oct. 28.4 by a team of nine observers and measurers show a diffuse 8" coma
and no tail.

     2013 UT             R.A. (2000) Decl.       Mag.   Observer
     Oct. 22.10774   21 18 01.97   + 8 11 43.3   17.9   Johnson
          22.11380   21 18 02.37   + 8 11 38.8   18.7     "
          22.11985   21 18 02.66   + 8 11 35.0   18.2     "

The available astrometry, the following elliptical orbital elements by G. V.
Williams, and an ephemeris appear on MPEC 2013-U83.

     T = 2013 Nov. 18.6104 TT         Peri. = 142.9399
     e = 0.776927                     Node  = 211.5585  2000.0
     q = 2.407949 AU                  Incl. =  23.8201
       a = 10.794445 AU    n = 0.0277910    P =  35.5 years


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

                         (C) Copyright 2013 CBAT
2013 October 30                  (CBET 3682)              Daniel W. E. Green