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C/1941 B2 (de Kock–Paraskevopoulos)

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C/1941 B2 (de Kock–Paraskevopoulos)
The comet on 16 February 1941 by Yerkes Observatory
Discovery[1]
Discovered byReginald Purdon de Kock, John S. Paraskevopoulos
Discovery date15 January 1941
Orbital characteristics[2]
Epoch1941-Feb-15.0
Observation arc241 days
Aphelion1,760 AU
Perihelion0.79 AU
Eccentricity0.9991
Inclination168.2°
43.1°
Argument of
periapsis		268.7°
Last perihelion27 January 1941

Comet de Kock–Paraskevopoulos (also known with the designations C/1941 B2, 1941 IV, 1941c) is a non-periodic comet discovered on 15 January 1941. The comet reached an apparent magnitude of about +2.[3]

The comet was first observed by Reginald Purdon de Kock in Paarl, South Africa while he was observing variable star R Lupi on 15 January 1941 and notified the Royal Observatory. He estimated the comet had a magnitude of 5.8 and its tail was half a degree long.[1] The comet was independently discovered by Frank Skjellerup in Melbourne on 20 January and confirmed the discovery the next day, while a person named Barnes also notified Melbourne Observatory about the comet on 21 January.[1] John S. Paraskevopoulos of the Harvard College Observatory in Bloemfontein, unaware of the other discoveries, found the comet on 23 January and sent immediately a radiogram in Harvard College, and thus the comet became known in the United States as comet Paraskevopoulos.[1]

The comet brightened rapidly to a magnitude of 2 to 3 the next days, while its tail was reported to be about 5 degrees long. The comet reached its perihelion on 27 January and two days later was the closest approach to Earth, at a distance of 0.2655 AU. On 27 January the comet also reached its southernmost declination, at -57°.[1] On that day, Harley Weston Wood reported a magnitude of 3.26 at a tail length of 5° by naked eye. The comet brightened a bit more the following days, with Ronald Alexander McIntosh reporting magnitude 2.2 and a tail length of 6 degrees on 31 January.[1]

In February the comet began to fade, as it was moving away both from Earth and the Sun.[1] The tail appeared bent the first days of the month. By the mid of February the comet had faded to a magnitude of about 5 and stopped being visible with naked eye.[4] In March the solar elongation decreased and the comet passed 0.6 degrees from the Sun on April 28. The comet was recovered on 4 July by George van Biesbroeck and was last detected on 27 September 1941.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Kronk, Gary W. (2009). Cometography: a catalogue of comets. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 126–132. ISBN 9780521585071.
  2. ^ "Small-Body Database Lookup: C/1941 B2 (de Kock-Paraskevopoulos)". ssd.jpl.nasa.gov. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
  3. ^ "Brightest comets seen since 1935". www.icq.eps.harvard.edu. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
  4. ^ Bortle, John. "THE BRIGHT-COMET CHRONICLES". www.icq.eps.harvard.edu. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
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