D/1978 R1 (Haneda–Campos)

D/1978 R1 (Haneda–Campos)
Discovery[1]
Discovered byToshio Haneda
José S. Campos
Discovery siteFukushima, Japan
Durban, South Africa
Discovery date1 September 1978
Designations
1978j[2]
1978 XX
Orbital characteristics[4]
Epoch28 September 1978 (JD 2443773.5)
Observation arc122 days
Earliest precovery date9 August 1978
Number of
observations		62
Aphelion5.479 AU
Perihelion1.101 AU
Semi-major axis3.290 AU
Eccentricity0.66524
Orbital period5.968 years
Avg. orbital speed10 km/s
Inclination5.947°
132.25°
Argument of
periapsis		240.46°
Last perihelion9 October 1978
(observed)
17 April 2023[3]
(calculated)
Next perihelion18 September 2029[3]
(calculated)
TJupiter2.763
Earth MOID0.135 AU
Jupiter MOID0.331 AU
Physical characteristics[5]
Comet total
magnitude (M1)		12.8
Comet nuclear
magnitude (M2)		18.0
9.0
(1978 apparition)

Comet Haneda–Campos, formally designated as D/1978 R1, was a periodic comet with a 5.97-year elliptical orbit around the Sun.[4] It was never successfully recovered during its 1984 and 1991 apparitions, and is now considered lost.[5]

Observational history

Discovery

The comet was independently discovered by Toshio Haneda and José da Silva Campos about nine hours apart from each other on the night of 1 September 1978. At the time of discovery, the comet was a diffuse 9th-10th magnitude object within the constellation Microscopium.[a] Their discoveries were later confirmed by John C. Bennett on 5 September 1978.[1]

Follow-up observations

Precovery images of the comet were found to have been taken between 9 and 11 August 1984, from the Perth and Palomar observatories,[6][7] which enabled Brian G. Marsden to refine the orbital calculations for the comet.[6] Based on Marsden's calculations, the comet made two close encounters with Jupiter in 1957 and 1969, where the comet approached at a distance of 0.3–0.4 AU (45–60 million km) from the giant planet.[7]

The comet made its closest approach with Earth at a distance of 0.154 AU (23.0 million km) on 9 September 1978.[5] It remained as a 10th-magnitude object at the time of its closest Earth encounter, leading astronomers to believe the comet was indeed an intrinsically faint object.[8] It rapidly faded away throughout late September and October, until it was last seen as an 18th-magnitude object on 29 November 1978.[5]

Recovery efforts

Brian G. Marsden and Shuichi Nakano independently calculated the comet's next perihelia by using 24–55 positions recorded between July and November 1978, and both predicted the comet's return in 1984 and 1991 respectively.[9] However, astronomers failed to recover the comet during both apparitions. It is theorized that the comet was at an outburst during its discovery, and is actually usually fainter than what was observed in 1978.[10]

On 24 December 1984, a faint comet-like object was spotted by Tsutomu Seki, where he initially thought it was the same comet as Haneda–Campos.[11] However, subsequent orbital calculations of this object did not in fact match that of D/1978 R1. As of 2025, the comet remains lost, though the search continues as it approaches its next perihelion in 2029, where it is expected to make another close approach to Earth like it did in 1978.[12]

Meteor shower

The comet is the parent body of a meteor shower called the October Capricornids.[13] First observed in 1971 and 1987,[14] this meteor shower produced about 2–3 meteors per hour at its peak activity. It was again observed from Spain between 1985 and 1988.[15]

A meteoroid originating from Comet Haneda–Campos produced a bright fireball on 3 October 2021, which fell in the night sky over Granada, Spain around 19:41 UTC.[16]

References

Notes

  1. ^ Reported initial positions upon discovery were: α = 20h 51m , δ = –29° 27′ (Haneda) and α = 20h 51m , δ = –29° 40′ (Campos)[5]

Citations

  1. ^ a b B. G. Marsden (5 September 1978). "Comet Haneda–Campos (1978j)". International Astronomical Union Circular (3259).
  2. ^ "Comet Names and Designations". International Comet Quarterly. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  3. ^ a b S. Yoshida (6 January 2024). "D/1978 R1 (Haneda–Campos)". Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  4. ^ a b "D/1978 R1 (Haneda–Campos) – JPL Small-Body Database Lookup". ssd.jpl.nasa.gov. Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
  5. ^ a b c d e G. W. Kronk. "D/1978 R1 (Haneda–Campos)". Cometography.com. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  6. ^ a b B. G. Marsden (8 September 1978). "Periodic Comet Haneda–Campos (1978j)". International Astronomical Union Circular (3262).
  7. ^ a b B. G. Marsden (19 September 1978). "Periodic Comet Haneda–Campos (1978j)". International Astronomical Union Circular (3271).
  8. ^ B. G. Marsden (14 September 1978). "Periodic Comet Haneda–Campos (1978j)". International Astronomical Union Circular (3267).
  9. ^ G. W. Kronk (2010). Cometography: A Catalog of Comets. Vol. 5: 1960–1982. Cambridge University Press. pp. 610–613. ISBN 978-0-521-87226-3.
  10. ^ D. Machholz (1985). A Decade of Comets: A Study of 33 Comets Discovered by Amateur Astronomers between 1975–1985 (PDF) (3rd ed.). pp. 28–29. ISBN 0-9646487-0-9.
  11. ^ T. Seki (2005). "Memorable Comets: D/1978 R1 (Haneda–Campos)". Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  12. ^ J. S. Campos; et al. (8 October 2021). "16 new asteroids identified as comets". Zooniverse.org. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  13. ^ P. Jenniskens (14–17 September 2006). Meteor Showers and their Parent Comets. Proceedings of the International Meteor Conference. Roden, Netherlands. pp. 56–62. Bibcode:2007pimo.conf...56J. ISBN 978-2-87355-018-9.
  14. ^ J. Wood (1988). "The October Capricornid meteor stream". WGN, Journal of the International Meteor Organization. 16 (6): 191–194. Bibcode:1988JIMO...16..191W.
  15. ^ J. M. T. Rodriguez (1989). "The October Capricornids observed in Spain". WGN, Journal of the International Meteor Organization. 17 (4): 158–160. Bibcode:1989JIMO...17..158R.
  16. ^ J. M. Madiedo (4 October 2021). "Bright fireball over Spain generated by a meteoroid from Comet D/1978 R1 (Haneda–Campos)". The Watchers. Retrieved 12 January 2025.