Numbered Minor Planets That Are Also Comets
| Name | Cometary name | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| 2060 Chiron | 95P/Chiron | Discovered in 1977 as the first centaur, later found to display cometary behavior (including a coma) |
| 4015 Wilson–Harrington | 107P/Wilson–Harrington | In 1992, it was realized that asteroid 1979 VA's orbit matched it with the positions of the lost comet Wilson-Harrington (1949 III) |
| 7968 Elst–Pizarro | 133P/Elst–Pizarro | Discovered in 1996 as a comet, but orbitally matched to asteroid 1979 OW7 |
| 60558 Echeclus | 174P/Echeclus | Second centaur found to have a coma |
| 118401 LINEAR | 176P/LINEAR (LINEAR 52) | Main-belt comet-asteroid discovered to have a coma on November 26, 2005 |
Note there are quite a few other cases where a non-numbered asteroid with only a systematic designation (such as 2001 OG108) turned out to be a comet (in this case C/2001 OG108 (LONEOS)). The above table lists only numbered asteroids that are also comets.
Read more about this topic: List Of Notable Asteroids
Famous quotes containing the words minor, planets and/or comets:
“A certain minor light may still
Leap incandescent
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As if a celestial burning took
Possession of the most obtuse objects now and then—”
—Sylvia Plath (1932–1963)
“Perhaps when distant people on other planets pick up some wave-length of ours all they hear is a continuous scream.”
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“The novel is not “a crazy quilt of bits”; it is a logical sequence of psychological events: the movements of stars may seem crazy to the simpleton, but wise men know the comets come back.”
—Vladimir Nabokov (1899–1977)