SPACE.com -- Armchair Astronomer Finds 500th SOHO Comet via Internet

A small object spotted by Rainer Kracht of Elmshorn in Germany, in an image from SOHO received via the Internet, has been officially confirmed as Comet 2002 P3 (SOHO). It is the 500th comet discovered with the ESA-NASA solar spacecraft and it made its closest approach to the Sun at 16:05 Universal Time on Monday, 12 August.

Newfound Comet Visible in Binoculars

Newfound Asteroid to Pass Near Earth in mid-August


	Armchair Astronomer Finds 500th SOHO Comet via Internet By SPACE.com Staff posted: 12:30 pm ET 14 August 2002

Image:

Using an image obtained over the Internet, German armchair astronomer Rainer Kracht has discovered the 500th comet attributed to the Sun-observing SOHO spacecraft.

While SOHO (Solar and Heliospheric Observatory) was designed to monitor solar flares and other space weather that can hit Earth, professional astronomers and amateur comet hunters long ago realized they could spot the distinct trail of comets rushing toward the Sun as they prepared to round it or crash into it.

More than 75 percent of the 500 SOHO comets have been found by amateurs.

Most comets form beyond Pluto and never visit the inner solar system. However, when they do, some make perilously close passes to the Sun. A few survive to head back out, but many are swallowed.

Kracht's comet has been officially named 2002 P3 (SOHO). It made its closest approach to the Sun Aug. 12.

The LASCO coronagraph on SOHO, designed for seeing outbursts from the Sun, uses a mask to block the bright rays from the visible surface. It monitors a large volume of surrounding space, and as a result it is the most prolific discoverer of comets in the history of astronomy.

The biggest tallies have come from Kracht, the German, Mike Oates in England and Xavier Leprette from France. In a form of "virtual astronomy," they engaged in a bit of a race for discovery, going back over SOHO pictures from 1996 to 1999 to find dozens of comets that professionals had overlooked.

Kracht, a mathematics, physics, computer science and astronomy teacher at the Kooperative Gesamtschule Elmshorn in Elmshorn, has found 63 comets since August 2001 with the help of SOHO data and images.

Oates leads all armchair comet hunters with 136 discoveries.

Number 500 is a very faint comet compared to many other more spectacular sun-grazers, according to a statement issued by NASA. SOHO is a cooperative effort of NASA and the European Space Agency.

SPACE.com Cams: See the Sun, Live!