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C/1959 Q2 (Alcock)

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For the other four comets discovered by George E. D. Alcock, see Comet Alcock.
C/1959 Q2 (Alcock)
Comet Alcock imaged by Elizabeth Roemer from the US Naval Observatory on 1 September 1959.[1]
Discovery[2]
Discovered byGeorge E. D. Alcock
Discovery sitePeterborough, England
Discovery date30 August 1959
Designations
1959 VI, 1959f[3]
Orbital characteristics[4]
Epoch4 September 1959 (JD 2436815.5)
Observation arc5 days
Number of
observations		14
Perihelion0.166 AU
Eccentricity1.00043
Inclination108.04°
225.84°
Argument of
periapsis		300.54°
Mean anomaly–0.002°
Last perihelion15 September 1959
Earth MOID0.161 AU
Jupiter MOID2.839 AU
Physical characteristics[5][6]
Comet nuclear
magnitude (M2)		8.1–11.0
4.7
(1959 apparition)

Comet Alcock, formally designated as C/1959 Q2, is a relatively bright hyperbolic comet that only appeared for a week in September 1959. It was the second comet discovered by English astronomer George Alcock.

Observational history

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Shortly after discovering C/1959 Q1 George Alcock found his second comet using a pair of binoculars on the night of 30 August 1959.[2] He described the new comet as a diffuse, sixth-magnitude object with a central condensation and a small tail, located within the constellation Cancer.[a]

Elizabeth Roemer took long-exposure photographs of the comet from the US Naval Observatory in 1 September 1959, reporting a sharply-condensed nucleus and a tail over a degree in length.[1] By the following day, Alois Purgathofer,[7] George van Biesbroeck, and D. P. Elias also observed the comet, where it was reported that the comet had slightly brightened to 5.7 in apparent magnitude.[8] On 4 September it brightened further to magnitude 4.7.[5]

The comet was last seen by Roemer on 6 September 1959 within the constellation Hydra,[b] shortly before an expected solar conjunction the following day.[9]

References

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Notes

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  1. ^ Reported initial position upon discovery was: α = 8h 09.5m , δ = 17° 31′[6]
  2. ^ Last known positions upon final observation were: α = 9h 29.9m , δ = 5° 05′[6]

Citations

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  1. ^ a b E. Roemer (1959). "Observer's Page: Four Bright Comets of 1959". Sky & Telescope. Vol. 18, no. 12. pp. 686–687.
  2. ^ a b G. E. D. Alcock; M. P. Candy (1 September 1959). J. M. Vinter Hansen (ed.). "Comet Alcock (1959f)". IAU Circular. 1687 (2).
  3. ^ "Comet Names and Designations". International Comet Quarterly. Retrieved 2 June 2025.
  4. ^ "C/1959 Q2 (Alcock) – JPL Small-Body Database Lookup". ssd.jpl.nasa.gov. Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 2 June 2025.
  5. ^ a b J. C. Bennett; S. C. Venter (1959). "Observations of Comets Alcock, 1959f, and Giacobini-Zinner, 1959b". Monthly Notes of the Astronomical Society of Southern Africa. 18: 156. Bibcode:1959MNSSA..18..156B.
  6. ^ a b c G. W. Kronk (2009). Cometography: A Catalog of Comets. Vol. 4: 1933–1959. Cambridge University Press. pp. 573–575. ISBN 978-0-521-58507-1.
  7. ^ J. Hopmann; A. Purgathofer (3 September 1959). J. M. Vinter Hansen (ed.). "Comet Alcock (1959f)". IAU Circular. 1688 (3).
  8. ^ G. van Biesbroeck; L. Mrkosova; M. Antal; et al. (8 September 1959). J. M. Vinter Hansen (ed.). "Comet Alcock (1959f)". IAU Circular. 1689 (2).
  9. ^ E. Roemer (1960). "Comet Alcock, 1959f, and the Problem of "Disappearing" Comets". Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific. 72 (428): 361. Bibcode:1960PASP...72..361R. doi:10.1086/127553.
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