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COMET 472P/NEAT-LINEAR -  (= P/2002 T6 = P/2023 RL75 )

Af(rho) data according the CARA-approach is available via request to CARA-coordinator

http://cara.uai.it

Comet 472P/NEAT-LINEAR (astro.vanbuitenen.nl)

Discovery: IAUC 8002

     An object reported as asteroidal independently by the NEAT and LINEAR surveys, and later placed on the NEOCP, has been found cometary in appearance.  P. Birtwhistle, Great Shefford, U.K., reports that CCD images taken with a 0.3-m reflector on Oct. 27.9 UT show two faint, thin, straight tails in p.a. 107 deg (36" long) and 310 deg (39" long) and a nuclear condensation with diameter about 8".  T. B. Spahr reports that 5-min exposures taken with the Mt. Hopkins 1.2-m reflector on Oct. 29.2 show a small coma of diameter about 6" and an extremely faint tail about 10" long in p.a. 330 deg. [IAUC 8002, 2002 October 29]

Although some time from perihelion, it is a distant object in a periodic orbit and will initially fade. The period is around 21.2 years and the perihelion distance 3.4 au.

Recovery: [  COMET P/2002 T6 = P/2023 RL75 (NEAT-LINEAR)  ]

An asteroid was discovered at 21st magnitude by Erwin Schwab with the Calar Alto-Schmidt on 2023 September 9.09. JPL classified it as a Centaur. The object was in a 21 year orbit with perihelion at 3.4 au in 2024 July. The orbit has a Jupiter MOID of 0.7 au and a Saturn MOID of 0.3 au. Alessandro Odasso pointed out on October 24 via the comet-ml that the orbit for this object was close to that of 2002 T6 (P/NEAT-LINEAR). The MPC confirmed this on October 30 with the issue of MPEC 2023-U279. Neither this nor CBET 5306 credits Alessandro, although the CBET alludes to the posting leading to further observations.

Given that an orbit was published before the identification was known the comet should have become P/NEAT-LINEAR-Schwab, but this approach was not followed.