 The comet on 10 January 2021 by ZTF | |
| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Donald Machholz |
| Discovery date | 13 August 1994 |
| Designations | |
| 1994o, 141P/1994 P1, 141P/1999 P1, Machholz 2 | |
| Orbital characteristics[3] | |
| Epoch | 28 July 2019 |
| Aphelion | 5.305 AU |
| Perihelion | 0.804 AU |
| Semi-major axis | 3.055 AU |
| Eccentricity | 0.737 |
| Orbital period | 5.339 years |
| Inclination | 13.978° |
| 241.877° | |
| Argument of periapsis | 153.617° |
| Last perihelion | 15 December 2020 |
| Next perihelion | 23 April 2026[2] |
| TJupiter | 2.709 |
| Earth MOID | 0.099 AU |
Comet 141P/Machholz or 141P/Machholz 2 is a periodic Jupiter family comet with an orbital period of 5.3 years. It was discovered by Donald Machholz on 13 August 1994.[1] A few days after the discovery a number of condensations were found near the main component of the comet, indicating that the comet had fragmented between 1987 and 1989, during its previous perihelion.[4]
- ^ a b Machholz, D. E.; Kojima, T.; Nakano, S. (1 August 1994). "Comet Machholz (1994o)". International Astronomical Union Circular (6053): 1. ISSN 0081-0304.
- ^ "141P/Machholz 2". www.aerith.net. Retrieved 26 December 2023.
- ^ "Small-Body Database Lookup: 141P/Machholz 2". ssd.jpl.nasa.gov. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
- ^ Sekanina, Zdenek (1 February 1999). "Multiple fragmentation of comet Machholz 2 (P/1994 P1)". Astronomy and Astrophysics. 342: 285–299. Bibcode:1999A&A...342..285S. ISSN 0004-6361.