12:30-2:00 Monday, October 17, Pasadena Convention Center, Room C102
The Comet Group at the University of Maryland is organizing a campaign to coordinate observations of Comet 46P/Wirtanen during its 2018 apparition. To kick off this campaign, we are holding a short workshop at the DPS meeting in Pasadena to raise awareness of this opportunity, and to assemble participants who may be interested in collaborations and coordinated studies, as well as public outreach and educational opportunities.
Comet Wirtanen is a small, hyperactive comet with properties similar to 103P/Hartley 2, and its orbit makes it a prime potential spacecraft target. Wirtanen will be observable for many hours per night for over a year around perihelion, coming within 0.077 AU from the Earth on December 16, 2018. This offers a unique opportunity to obtain long duration, high-resolution observations for deriving its physical characteristics and behavior. This event also offers the potential for mobilizing the amateur observing community to execute otherwise difficult-to-achieve science programs.
For more information, contact Tony Farnham ([email protected]).