Spacewatch Observations of Asteroids and Comets with Emphasis on Discoveries by WISE

Details Spacewatch Observations of Asteroids and Comets with Emphasis on Discoveries by WISE Spacewatch Observations of Asteroids and Comets with Emphasis on Discoveries by WISE

Oct 2010

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2010dps....42.1322m&link_type=abstract

American Astronomical Society, DPS meeting #42, #13.22; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 42, p.1057

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astronomy

Scientific paper

Astrometry and photometry of asteroids and comets by Spacewatch have expanded in their rate, telescopes used, and priorities since the summary in 2006 by McMillan et al. (2007 IAU Symp. 236, 329-340). Targeted recoveries of objects discovered by the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) have been added to those on the JPL and NEODyS impact risk pages, the Minor Planet Center (MPC)'s Confirmation Page, PHAs, comets, and other NEOs. Automation of the dome of our 1.8-m telescope and other enhancements to software and hardware have aided this expansion. About 3000 tracklets of NEOs are accepted by the MPC from Spacewatch each year.
Recoveries of WISE-discovered objects consolidate orbits and prevent objects from being lost. V or R-band photometry is essential to determine the albedo at the wavelength of the peak of incident solar flux, which reckons in modeling thermal properties from the WISE measurements of infrared (IR) flux. We specialize in the fainter objects and have reported astrometry and photometry of objects as faint as V=23. About 2/3rds of NEOs observed by WISE have been observed by Spacewatch, as well as half of the comets and several objects in the outer solar system discovered by WISE. Examination of visible-light images of objects that look cometary in the WISE IR imagery has confirmed some comets and not found cometary features in others.
Help and advice from the NEOWISE Team led by A. Mainzer of JPL have been essential to the selection and finding of targets. Extensive use of the MPC's lists and files of observations are made. Spacewatch is funded by NASA's NEO Observation and Planetary Astronomy Programs, the Brinson Foundation of Chicago, IL, and other private contributors. Time on the 2.3-m Bok telescope of Steward Observatory and the 4-m Mayall telescope of the Kitt Peak National Observatory is gratefully acknowledged.

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