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THE ASTRONOMER Electronic Circular No 1748      2002 Feb 26 17.27UT
Ed:Guy M Hurst, 16,Westminster Close, Kempshott Rise,  Basingstoke,
Hants, RG22 4PP,England.Telephone/FAX(01256)471074Int:+441256471074
INTERNET: GUY@TAHQ.DEMON.CO.UK             GMH at AST.STAR.RL.AC.UK
WORLD WIDE WEB                         http://www.theastronomer.org
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SUPERNOVA 2002aw IN ANONYMOUS GALAXY
Tim Puckett and M.Peoples, USA report in IAU Circular 7831, that
they have discovered a mag 16.6 supernova with the 0.60-m automated
supernova patrol telescope on images of Feb 15 and 16. The location
is: RA 16h 37m 29.06s DEC +40 52' 50.3" (2000), placing it 1.6"W
and 1.5"N of the centre of an anonymous galaxy. R. Kushida in Japan
confirmed the object on an image of Feb 16.

SUPERNOVAE 2002ax-2002be
The Deep Lens Survey Team have reported on IAU Circular 7833
details of their discovery of eight supernova on Feb 14-16 with the
Cerro Tololo 4-m telescope. All objects are fainter than magnitude
21.

COMET C/2002 C1 (IKEYA-ZHANG)
The following updated orbital elements have appeared on MPEC
2002-D36:

T 2002 Mar. 18.9784 TT                                  MPC
q   0.507061             (2000.0)            P               Q
z  +0.019502       Peri.   34.6666      -0.5491635      -0.6906790
                   Node    93.3718      +0.6195893      -0.7143048
e   0.990111       Incl.   28.1206      +0.5608284      +0.1128330
>From 309 observations 2002 Feb. 1-24.

Brian Marsden comments that numerical integration backward of the
perturbed equivalent of the above unperturbed solution yields a
previous perihelion date in March 1659. He adds that identity with
C/1661 C1 now looks more likely than with C/1532 R1.

Graeme Waddington, Oxford, has e-mailed the editor to comment on
the above findings by Brian.

Graeme reports that integrating the given unperturbed orbit yields,
using DE405 planetary masses, a previous perihelion of 1659 May
13.3 (Gregorian). 

Guy M Hurst