P/2019 LD2 (ATLAS)

For other comets discovered by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System, see Comet ATLAS.

P/2019 LD2 (ATLAS)
P/2019 LD2 (ATLAS) imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope in April 2020
Discovery [1]
Discovered byATLAS-MLO
Discovery siteMauna Loa Obs.
Discovery date10 June 2019 (first observed)
Designations
2019 LD2
Jupiter-family comet[1]
periodic [2]
centaur [3]
Orbital characteristics [1][4]
Epoch 27 July 2019 (JD 2458691.5)
Uncertainty parameter 4
Observation arc2.00 yr (729 d)
Earliest precovery date21 May 2018
Aphelion6.0774 AU
Perihelion4.5784 AU
5.3279 AU
Eccentricity0.14068
12.3 yr
339.529°
0° 4m 48.518s / day
Inclination11.517°
180.217°
122.688°
Jupiter MOID0.0334843 AU
TJupiter2.940
Physical characteristics
< 2.4 kilometers[5]
19.0[4]
12.20±0.83 (M1=6.9±0.8)[1]
12.1[4]

P/2019 LD2 (ATLAS) is a Jupiter-family comet discovered by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System on 10 June 2019.[6][7] It was initially reported as the first known Jupiter trojan asteroid to display cometary activity,[8] but its classification as a Jupiter trojan was retracted after closer examination and a longer observation arc revealed its orbit to be unstable like a typical Jupiter family comet and implied that its position near the trojans is temporary.[1][9]

  1. ^ a b c d e Cite error: The named reference jpldata was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference MPEC-2020-K134 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference Kareta2020 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference MPC-object was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Kareta2021 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Andrews, Robin George (3 December 2020). "A 'Front-Row Seat' to the Birth of a Comet - Astronomers are watching an object transform into a hyperactive comet that will head toward the inner solar system in the coming decades". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
  7. ^ Steckloff, J.K.; et al. (26 November 2020). "P/2019 LD2 (ATLAS): An Active Centaur in Imminent Transition to the Jupiter Family". The Astrophysical Journal. 904 (2): L20. arXiv:2008.02943. Bibcode:2020ApJ...904L..20S. doi:10.3847/2041-8213/abc888. S2CID 221083420.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference UH-News was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference UH-News-2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).