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Oct. 10, 2021
In the history of astronomy, there are cases when one and the same comet was lost several times, but each new discovery added a new name to its existing name. This fully applies to the history of observations of comet 54P / de Vico-Swift-NEAT. The comet was first discovered on 23 August 1844 by the Italian astronomer Francesco de Vico. Then the comet was at a distance of 30 million km from the Earth and 178 million km from the Sun.
Image above: Comet De Vico, photographed on the morning of October 4, 1995 at Elmcrest Observatory, located near Kingsville, Missouri, USA.
French astronomers Paul Logier and Felix Mauve, who observed the comet on September 9 of the same year, pointed to the existence of similarities with comets previously observed. They calculated an orbital period for it - 4.9 years. After the first discovery, the comet was named after the discoverer de Vico. However, within fifty years after 1844, the comet was lost.
On November 21, 1894, it was rediscovered by the American astronomer Edward Swift. As in 1844, the comet was in the constellation Aquarius and was described as a faint object with a small core and a short faint tail. The German astronomer Adolph Berberich, using calculations, suggested that this is the comet de Vico of 1844, and the name of the comet became somewhat longer - comet de Vico-Swift. After that, the comet was again included in the list of the lost. However, it is absolutely certain that the identity of Comet de Vico of 1844 and Comet Swift of 1894 was proved only in 1965, after calculations by the English astronomer Brian Marsden, who suggested that the comet's phenomenon in 1965 would be favorable for observations. The forecast was fully confirmed, but the comet was lost again.
And already in 2002, a group of American astronomers working in the framework of the Near-Earth Asteroid Tracking program - tracking near-Earth asteroids, announced the discovery of a new comet, temporarily designated P / 2002 T4. The Japanese astronomer K. Muraoka determined that this object is the previously discovered comet de Vico - Swift, and another component appeared in the name of the comet - NEAT.
Thus, the four times open comet received its modern name - 54P / de Vico-Swift-NEAT. Time will tell whether it will be final.
Source: Moscow Planetarium.
Related links:
ROSCOSMOS Press Release: https://www.roscosmos.ru/32884/
Moscow Planetarium: https://www.roscosmos.ru/tag/moskovskiy-planetariy/
Comet: https://www.roscosmos.ru/tag/kometa/
Images, Text, Credits: ROSCOSMOS/Moscow Planetarium/Orbiter.ch Aerospace/Roland Berga.
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