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A photometric and dynamic study of comet C/2013 A1 (Siding Spring) from observations at a heliocentric distance of ~4.1 AU

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Abstract

An analysis is presented for the photometric data on comet C/2013 A1 (Siding Spring) from observations at a large heliocentric distance (~4.1 AU). Comet C/2013 A1 (Siding Spring) displays intense activity despite the relatively large heliocentric distance. The morphology of the comet’s coma is analyzed. The following parameters are measured: the color indices V-R, the normalized spectral gradient of the reflectivity of the comet’s dust S', and the dust production rate Afρ. A numerical simulation is performed for the evolution of the comet’s orbit after a close encounter with Mars. The most probable values are obtained for the Keplerian orbital elements of the comet over a hundred-year period. The comet’s orbit remains nearly parabolic after passing the orbits of all the Solar System planets.

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Correspondence to Yu. S. Andrienko.

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Original Russian Text © Yu.S. Andrienko, A.V. Golovin, A.V. Ivanova, V.N. Reshetnik, S.N. Kolesnik, S.A. Borisenko, 2016, published in Astronomicheskii Vestnik, 2016, Vol. 50, No. 2, pp. 112–122.

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Andrienko, Y.S., Golovin, A.V., Ivanova, A.V. et al. A photometric and dynamic study of comet C/2013 A1 (Siding Spring) from observations at a heliocentric distance of ~4.1 AU. Sol Syst Res 50, 102–112 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1134/S0038094616020015

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