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THE ASTRONOMER Electronic Circular No 2282      2006 Nov 26 13.14UT
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      Backup: gmh@wdcc1.bnsc.rl.ac.uk
WORLD WIDE WEB                         http://www.theastronomer.org
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COMET C/2006 M4 (SWAN)
Further to the announcement of an outburst of this comet on 2006 Oct 24 
(see TA E-Circular 2274), a report has appeared on CBET738 from which 
the following is an extract:

Z. Sekanina, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of
Technology, writes that a preliminary inspection of the astrometric
observation of C. E. Woodward et al. from Nov. 7 of a detached-coma
feature, suggests that this is a compact cluster of sizable nucleus 
fragments, released from the primary at the time of a recent outburst. 
The cluster, rather than a single fragment, is implied by the feature's 
reported elongation along the offset vector, reminiscent of similar 
episodes experienced recently by
comet 73P's nuclei B, G, and others.  Assuming, tentatively, 2006 Oct. 
23.9 UT for this event's onset time, the observed offset fits the 
modelled separation distance perfectly and leaves a residual of 3 
degrees in the position angle, well within observational errors. The 
cluster's predicted separation distances and position angles, relative 
to the primary nucleus (0h TT, equinox 2000.0), are:  2006 Nov. 11, 5", 
39 deg; Nov. 21, 9", 35 deg; Dec. 1, 13", 31 deg; Dec. 11, 17", 27 
degrees.

(22) KALLIOPE AND (22) KALLIOPE I
M. Soma, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, Tokyo et. al., 
report on CBET 733 that the occultations by minor planet (22) Kalliope 
and its satellite Linus of the Tycho-catalogue star
1886-01206-1; V = 9.1; spectral type A5 = SAO 78190 = BD +27o1049 were 
observed in Japan at around 2006 Nov. 7.826 UT.

The angular distance of Linus from Kalliope was 0".26 in p.a. 313 
degrees at the time of the occultation. The derived size for Kalliope is 
190 x 125 km (with the major axis in p.a. 0 deg), and that for Linus is 
30 km. This is the first successful observation of an occultation by a 
satellite of a minor planet that was discovered previously by other 
means.  A diagram of the observations is at URL
http://uchukan.satsumasendai.jp/data/occult/0611Kalliope-red-E.gif

SUPERNOVA 2006my IN NGC 4651
Discovery by K. Itagaki of a possible supernova (IAUC 8773):
SN      2006 UT      R.A.  (2000.0)  Decl.    Mag.     Offset
2006my  Nov. 08.82  12 43 40.74  +16 23 14.1  15.3    27" W, 22.5"S
Type-II well past maximum light.

SUPERNOVAE 2006mz-2006ne
The above designations relate to discoveries during the Sloan Digital 
Sky Survey II of objects with g-magnitude 21.1-22.8.

Guy M Hurst