Copyright © All rights reserved. Made By Erik Bryssinck  Terms of use  |  Privacy policy

Comet 49P/Arend–Rigaux - ( = P/1951b )

49P on Kronck’s cometography

49P/Arend–Rigaux is a periodic comet with a 6.75-year orbit around the Sun. It is the first of three comets discovered by Belgian astronomer Sylvain Arend and the only one for Fernand Rigaux.

Discovery: ( IAUC 1301: comet 1951b )

S.J.V. Arend and F.Rigaux (Royal Observatory, Uccle, Belgium) discovered this comet on   1-hour exposure on 1951 february 5.85, during a routine search for minor planets. The estimated measured position as alpha = 7h22.8m and gamma = +23°39’. The estimated magnitude is 11, and described the comet as diffuse, with a central condensation. The daily motion was determined as +56s as alpha and +29’ as gamma. They exposed another plate on february 6.88 and found a trail with a dense core 1.7” wide and a nebulosity 6.2” wide. The estimated magnitude as 11.5.  There was prediscovery by G. Van Biesbroeck on plates taken on january 8.27 and magnitude was etwimated as 10.5

Recovery

at another good return in 1984 it reached 12m. At these returns it showed a faint coma and short tail, but at more distant returns it appears virtually stellar and this has lead to some reports of it being on the verge of extinction. The comet is one of a handful that has a measured nuclear rotation period, which is thought to be around 6.73 hours.