C/2006 W3 (Christensen)

C/2006 W3 (Christensen)
Comet C/2006 W3 (Christensen) photographed near Mayhill, New Mexico on 25 June 2009
Discovery
Discovered byEric J. Christensen
Discovery siteCatalina Sky Survey
Discovery date18 November 2006
Orbital characteristics
Epoch11 March 2009 (JD 2454901.5)
Observation arc4.90 years (1,791 days)
Earliest precovery date29 October 2006
Number of
observations		5,639
Aphelion~5,300 AU (inbound)
~8,200 AU (outbound)
Perihelion3.126 AU
Eccentricity0.99982
Orbital period~140,000 years (inbound)
~260,000 years (outbound)
Max. orbital speed23.8 km/s
Inclination127.07°
113.57°
Argument of
periapsis		133.51°
Last perihelion6 July 2009
TJupiter–1.321
Earth MOID2.299 AU
Jupiter MOID1.304 AU
Physical characteristics
Mean radius
13.0±2.0 km
21 hours
0.04 (assumed)
Comet total
magnitude (M1)		8.2
7.6
(2009 apparition)

C/2006 W3 (Christensen) is a non-periodic comet that was observed through telescopes between 2006 and 2011. It is one of several comets discovered by American astronomer, Eric J. Christensen.

Physical characteristics

Infrared observations from Herschel and Spitzer in 2009 allowed astronomers to estimate the size and rotation of C/2003 W3's nucleus. Initial estimates in 2010 revealed an effective radius of <26 km (16 mi), however this value was later revised to 13±2 km in 2016, assuming a geometric albedo of 0.04. Data from Spitzer also revealed that the comet has a rotation period of 21 hours.

References

  1. ↑ E. J. Christensen (20 November 2006). D. W. Green (ed.). "Comet C/2006 W3 (Christensen)". IAU Circular. 8777 (1). ISSN 0081-0304.
  2. ↑ "Barycentric Osculating Orbital Elements for Comet C/2006 W3 (Christensen) in epoch 1800 and 2200". JPL Horizons On-Line Ephemeris System. Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 6 June 2025. (Solution using the Solar System's barycenter (Sun+Jupiter). Select Ephemeris Type:Elements and Center:@0)
  3. 1 2 "C/2006 W3 (Christensen) – JPL Small-Body Database Lookup". ssd.jpl.nasa.gov. Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
  4. 1 2 P. P. Korsun; I. Kulyk; O. V. Ivanova; O. V. Zakhozhay; et al. (2016). "Optical spectrophotometric monitoring of comet C/2006 W3 (Christensen) before perihelion" (PDF). Astronomy & Astrophysics. 596: 48–58. Bibcode:2016A&A...596A..48K. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/201629046.
  5. 1 2 3 W. T. Reach; M. S. P. Kelley; J. Vaubaillon (2013). "Survey of cometary CO
    2    , CO, and particulate emissions using the Spitzer Space Telescope". Icarus. 226 (1): 777–797. arXiv:1306.2381. Bibcode:2013Icar..226..777R. doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2013.06.011.
  6. ↑ "Observation list for C/2006 W3". COBS – Comet OBServation database. Retrieved 7 June 2025.
  7. ↑ D. Bockelée-Morvan; P. Hartogh; J. Crovisier; B. Vandenbussche; B. M. Swinyard; et al. (2010). "A study of the distant activity of comet C/2006 W3 (Christensen) with Herschel and ground-based radio telescopes" (PDF). Astronomy & Astrophysics. 518: 149–155. arXiv:1005.1592. Bibcode:2010A&A...518L.149B. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/201014655.