<<   Top | Contents | News | Science | NEOCP | MPECs | Observers | Risks | Chronology | Index   >>

Contents  on 22 May '07

• Minor-Object News -- eight items
• Minor-Object Science -- three papers
• IAU Minor Planet Center
  • NEOCP Activity -- ten listings: 5 new, 5 updated
  • New MPECs -- two MPECs
  • Observers -- fifteen observing facilities
• Impact Risk Monitoring -- one object reported
• Chronology

WELCOME to A/CC's prototype daily news publication designed to be the viewing end of a planned autonomous 24-hour news service. The new tools and this publication format are working well enough now to share with readers. It is expected that this approach will require less time to maintain than our previous news and small asteroid pages, which were retired on May 14th. There's still more development ahead and there probably will be some glitches along the way, but this is what's needed to keep up with the increasing pace of minor-object news. The CRT page will be maintained separately for a little while longer, until all of this is working smoothly. And the CRT and small-asteroid ephemerides will be kept going.

<<   Top | Contents | News | Science | NEOCP | MPECs | Observers | Risks | Chronology | Index   >>

Minor-Object News  on 22 May '07

• Younger Dryas impact theory: At the American Geophysical Union Joint Assembly in Acapulco, Mexico there will be a news conference tomorrow morning, Wednesday the 23rd, about scientific evidence "that a massive body, possibly a comet, exploded in the atmosphere over the Laurentide Ice Sheet 12,900 years ago," causing the "Younger Dryas Cool Episode." This was a mysterious abrupt change in the the deglaciation process at the end of the last ice age represented by anomalies across the scientific record -- geological, oceanographical, paleontological, and archealogical. Then, on Thursday, three consecutive sessions will present more than two dozen papers and posters addressing the cause and effects of the Younger Dryas. See the abstract for the central paper, "New Insights into Younger Dryas Climatic Instability, Mass Extinction, the Clovis People, and Extraterrestrial Impacts," by Richard Firestone, Alan West, James P. Kennett, and Luann Becker. Most of the information from these presentations has been embargoed, so expect to hear a lot more in the coming days and afterward.
  • "Catastrophic Comet Chilled and Killed Ice Age Beasts," LiveScience.com 21 May - Quote: "An extraterrestrial object with a three-mile girth might have exploded over southern Canada nearly 13,000 years ago."
  • "New Clovis-Age Comet Impact Theory," Univ. of Oregon 21 May - Quote: "Two University of Oregon researchers are on a multi-institutional 26-member team proposing a startling new theory: that an extraterrestrial impact, possibly a comet, set off a 1,000-year-long cold spell and wiped out or fragmented the prehistoric Clovis culture and a variety of animal genera across North America almost 13,000 years ago."
• "Organizing the Universe with Physicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson," Wired 22 May - Quote: "But, what we learned over the years is that even though comets are distinctly different looking from asteroids, if you really inventory all these objects that are flying around crossing the orbits of planets, you find that there's a continuum. There are objects that are mostly ice and only a little bit of rock, objects that are 100% rock, and objects that have some mixture in between. And so, the real organization of the solar system may ultimately just simply land on a continuum between asteroids and comets." - Note: Also available as a podcast.
• "Nasa Rededicates Flying Observatory on Lindbergh Anniversary," SOFIA 21 May - Note: This version of yesterday's NASA news release includes pictures. And NASA/Dryden's SOFIA photo collection now includes two images from SOFIA's second test flight on May 10th, this time with wheels up.
• "Tracing Our Sun's Family Tree," Space.com 22 May - Quote: "Our Sun was born in an open cluster some 4.6 billion years ago, growing alongside its sibling stars like grapes on a vine, theorists say. Meteorites hold evidence for this close companionship in that they contain traces of the radioactive decay of the isotope Iron-60 which is only produced when a large star explodes in a supernova."
• "Critics slam NASA analysis of asteroid risk as deeply flawed," Daily India 22 May - Note: This story appears to come from a report that appeared yesterday in New Scientist available only to subscribers.
• "NASA readies Dawn for asteroid encounter," Florida Today 22 May - Quote: "The spacecraft will be setting sail on a mission to study the solar system's two largest protoplanets, Ceres and Vesta."

<<   Top | Contents | News | Science | NEOCP | MPECs | Observers | Risks | Chronology | Index   >>

Minor-Object Science  on 22 May '07

• "The Dust and Gas Around beta Pictoris" by Chen, C.H. with A. Li, C. Bohac & 12 others, abstract & PDF at arXiv.org 22 May - Quote: "The observed dust emission is well reproduced by a dust model consisting of fluffy cometary and crystalline olivine aggregates."
• "Spatial separation of small and large grains in the transitional disk around the young star IRS 48" by Geers, V.C. with K.M. Pontoppidan, E.F. van Dishoeck & 5 others, abstract & PDF at arXiv.org 22 May - Quote: "We present spatially resolved mid-infrared images of the disk surrounding the young star IRS 48 in the Ophiuchus cloud complex... IRS 48 may represent a short-lived transitional phase from a classical to a weak-line T Tauri star."
• "The dust temperatures of the prestellar cores in the rho Oph main cloud and in other star forming regions" by Stamatellos, D. with A.P. Whitworth & D. Ward-Thompson, abstract & PDF at arXiv.org 22 May

<<   Top | Contents | News | Science | NEOCP | MPECs | Observers | Risks | Chronology | Index   >>

NEOCP Activity  on 22 May '07

The MPC's NEO Confirmation Page has 10 listings: 5 new, 5 updated

When last checked at 2355 UTC today, the Minor Planet Center's NEO discovery Confirmation Page (NEOCP) had five new and five updated listings. Of these, five were "one nighters." Major News counted a total of eleven objects listed on the NEOCP at some point on this day.

<<   Top | Contents | News | Science | NEOCP | MPECs | Observers | Risks | Chronology | Index   >>

New MPECs  on 22 May '07

Minor Planet Electronic Circulars

There were two MPECs issued this day from the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

• MPEC 2007-K32 time-stamped "06:09 UT" - Daily Orbit Update - see below
• MPEC 2007-K33 time-stamped "19:55 UT" - 2002 LD35

MPEC 2007-K33 - "19:55 UT" - 2002 LD35

• K02L35D   2002 LD35 (Q=4.424 AU, H=17.2 ~1.23 km) from Pla D'Arguines Obs. (May 19.05-06p7) and Petit Jean Mtn. South Obs. (PJMSO) (May 21.38-40p7)

<< DOU on 22 May '07 >>  MPEC 2007-K32 - "06:09 UT" - Daily Orbit Update

• Observations of small asteroids (H>22.0)
• K07K00K   2007 KK (arc=5 days, H=23.5 ~68m) from Astronomical Research Obs. (ARO) (May 21.25-26p3)
• K07K00E   2007 KE (arc=5 days, H=22.5 ~107m) from Powell Obs. (May 21.17-18p4)
• K07H84D   2007 HD84 (arc=25 days, H=23.5 ~68m) from Powell Obs. (May 21.21-22p3)
• Observations of almost-small asteroids (21.7<H<=22.0)
• K07J02Y   2007 JY2 (arc=12 days, H=21.8 ~148m) from Powell Obs. (May 21.24p3)
• Observations of other objects
• K07J40E   2007 JE40 (arc=6 days, H=20.1 ~323m) from PJMSO (May 21.34p4)
• K07J35J   2007 JJ35 (i=56.1°, arc=7 days, H=18.4 ~708m) from Balzaretto Obs. (May 20.87-89p4), Powell Obs. (May 21.12p4), PJMSO (May 21.23-24p7), and the Catalina Sky Survey (CSS) (May 21.24-27p3)
• K07J22H   2007 JH22 (arc=9 days, H=21.7 ~155m) from Powell Obs. (May 21.19p3)
• K07J20Z   2007 JZ20 (i=40.5°, arc=10 days, H=18.4 ~708m) from PJMSO (May 21.31-32p6)
• K07J02X   2007 JX2 (arc=12 days, H=19.4 ~446m) from Powell Obs. (May 21.22-23p3)
• K07F42V   2007 FV42 (arc=62 days, H=17.8 ~933m) from Hadano Obs. (May 14.69-70p5), New Millennium Obs. (May 19.01-06p9), Remanzacco Obs. (May 19.92p3), PJMSO (May 21.36-37p6), and Hamamatsu-Yuto Obs. (May 21.60-62p5)
• K07F03K   2007 FK3 (arc=63 days, H=18.8 ~589m) from ARO (May 21.10-11p3)
• K07F01L   2007 FL1 (arc=65 days, H=18.7 ~616m) from CSS (May 21.43p2)
• K07F01K   2007 FK1 (arc=65 days, H=20.2 ~309m) from Hadano Obs. (April 14.65-66p4 & May 14.62-63p5), Bisei Spaceguard Center (Bisei) (April 19.58-59p5, 20.66-68p10 & 25.64-65p5), New Millennium Obs. (May 18.92-94p4), and PJMSO (May 21.41p7)
• K07E00Y   2007 EY (arc=55 days, H=19.8 ~371m) from Bisei (April 19.60p4)
• K07D84S   2007 DS84 (arc=52 days, H=20.8 ~234m) from Bisei (April 20.71-72p4)
• K07D83B   2007 DB83 (arc=3 opp, H=18.3 ~741m) from Bisei (April 7.55-56p3), Hadano Obs. (April 14.63-64p4), PJMSO (May 21.19-20p6), and Lindenberg Obs. (May 21.88-89p3)
• K06V02V   2006 VV2 (arc=2 opp, H=16.8 ~1.48 km) from Bisei (April 4.51-56p11)
• K06K89E   2006 KE89 (i=45.1°, q=0.211 AU, arc=3 opp, H=16.5 ~1.70 km) from Hadano Obs. (May 15.62-63p4), PJMSO (May 21.35p6), and Lindenberg Obs. (May 21.91-92p3)
• K05L03R   2005 LR3 (arc=3 opp, H=17.3 ~1.17 km) from PJMSO (May 21.28-29p5)
• K05A13D   2005 AD13 (arc=2 opp, H=17.9 ~891m) from PJMSO (May 21.38p6)
• K03L03S   2003 LS3 (Q=4.045 AU, arc=2 opp, H=17.8 ~933m) from ARO (May 21.12-14p3)
• K02K04F   2002 KF4 (i=37.2°, Q=4.571 AU, arc=3 opp, H=17.3 ~1.17 km) from Hadano Obs. (May 14.57-58p4), PJMSO (May 21.30p5), Hamamatsu-Yuto Obs. (May 21.56-57p4), and Lindenberg Obs. (May 21.90-91p4)
• K00R53D   2000 RD53 (arc=2 opp, H=20.1 ~323m) from ARO (May 21.20-22p3 at V=22.2-3)
• K00K00B   2000 KB (i=56.0°, Q=4.205 AU, arc=5 opp, H=16.2 ~1.95 km) from PJMSO (May 21.26-27p5)
• K00A06D   2000 AD6 (arc=3 opp, H=18.5 ~676m) from ARO (May 21.15-18p2 at V=23.0-1)
• J98U01L   1998 UL1 (i=42.0°, arc=5 opp, H=16.6 ~1.62 km) from PJMSO (May 21.18p5) and Hamamatsu-Yuto Obs. (May 21.46-49p5)
• F4991   154991 2005 BX26 from LONEOS (May 21.20p1 & 21.24-27p2)
• F4453   154453 2003 CJ11 from New Millennium Obs. (May 18.86-90p8)
• F4007   154007 2002 BY from PJMSO (May 21.19p5)
• F2895   152895 2000 CQ101 from LONEOS (May 21.20-26p4)
• F2558   152558 1990 SA from PJMSO (May 21.22p5)
• E5656   145656 4788 P-L from Hadano Obs. (May 15.58-59p5), New Millennium Obs. (May 18.87-91p6), and PJMSO (May 21.24-25p5)
• D8883   138883 2000 YL29 from PJMSO (May 21.20-22p5)
• D6874   136874 1998 FH74 from Hadano Obs. (May 17.62-63p6) and PJMSO (May 21.35-36p5)
• 99935   99935 2002 AV4 from CSS (May 21.19-22p4)
• 88263   88263 2001 KQ1 from LONEOS (May 21.21-28p4)
• 86829   86829 2000 GR146 from New Millennium Obs. (May 18.92-99p12), PJMSO (May 21.30-31p5), Hamamatsu-Yuto Obs. (May 21.53-55p3), and Mt. Tuffley Obs. (May 21.93p3)
• 85275   85275 1994 LY from New Millennium Obs. (May 19.02-07p9)
• 68216   68216 2001 CV26 from Boambee Obs. (May 7.37p1, 7.43-46p2 & 20.41-44p2)
• 40267   40267 1999 GJ4 from New Millennium Obs. (May 18.86-90p9)
• 39796   39796 1997 TD from PJMSO (May 21.27-28p5)
• 12923   12923 Zephyr (1999 GK4) from CSS (May 21.18-21p4)
• 08037   8037 1993 HO1 from LONEOS (May 21.21-27p4)
• 05626   5626 1991 FE from CSS (May 21.15-18p4)
• 04341   4341 Poseidon (1987 KF) from PJMSO (May 21.40p5)
• 03554   3554 Amun (1986 EB) from CSS (May 21.15-17p4)
• 01862   1862 Apollo (1932 HA) from Bisei (April 20.72-73p3)

<<   Top | Contents | News | Science | NEOCP | MPECs | Observers | Risks | Chronology | Index   >>

Observers  on 22 May '07

Fifteen observing facilities appeared in this day's MPECs.

<<   Top | Contents | News | Science | NEOCP | MPECs | Observers | Risks | Chronology | Index   >>

Impact Risk Monitoring  on 22 May '07

Legend: VI# = VI count, Prob Cum = cumulative probability, PS Cum/Max = cumulative/maximum Palermo Scale, TS = Torino Scale

For a list of all risk-rated objects recently in view, see our ephemerides page.

An impact solution, also known as a "virtual impactor" (VI), is not a prediction but rather a possibility derived from an orbit calculation that cannot be eliminated yet based on the existing data. Elimination can come quickly with just a little further observation or may take weeks or months, sometimes years. Once superceded or eliminated, a former impact solution has zero relevance to an object's risk. See Jon Giorgini's "Understanding Risk Pages" for more about all this.

<<   Top | Contents | News | Science | NEOCP | MPECs | Observers | Risks | Chronology | Index   >>

Chronology  on 22 May '07

Times are UTC for when the items were noted by Major News.