9 papers
Multi-year Ground-Based Survey Photometry of Active Comet 103P/Hartley 2 and Centaur (2060) Chiron: A Tale of Two Comets in the Pre-LSST Era
Joseph Murtagh, Megan E. Schwamb, Michael S. P. Kelley +22
Comets and Centaurs trace the evolution of trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs) into the inner solar system. Their activity reflects the interplay between volatile sublimation, dust dyna…
Changes in Pluto's Atmosphere Based on Stellar Occultation Data from 2017 to 2023
Amanda A. Sickafoose, Michael J. Person, Carlos A. Zuluaga +14
Pluto's tenuous atmosphere has bar-level pressure and is composed primarily of , with a variable haze. Its eccentric orbit combined with high obliquity leads to s…
A Look at Eight Outbursts of Comet 7P/Pons-Winnecke
Ky Huynh, Michael S. P. Kelley, Jessica M. Sunshine +6
Cometary outbursts may be used as a means to infer the physical processes occurring on cometary nuclei. To that end, we studied eight outbursts of comet 7P/Pons-Winnecke identified…
NSF-DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory Observations of Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS (C/2025 N1)
Colin Orion Chandler, Pedro H. Bernardinelli, Mario JuriÄ +305
We report on the observation and measurement of astrometry, photometry, morphology, and activityof the interstellar object 3I/ATLAS, also designated C/2025 N1 (ATLAS) with the NSF-…
Sequential Fragmentation of C/2025 K1 (ATLAS) After Its Near-Sun Passage
Dennis Bodewits, John W. Noonan, Michael S. P. Kelley +6
Comet C/2025 K1 (ATLAS) reached perihelion at 0.33 au on 2025 October 8. Daily monitoring by the LCO Outbursting Objects Key Project revealed a major activity increase between Nove…
Astrometric follow-up of near-Earth asteroid 2024 YR4 during a Torino scale level 3 alert
Marco Micheli, Maxime Devogèle, Larry Denneau +38
The discovery of 2024 YR4 presented the planetary defense community with the most significant impact threat in almost two decades, reaching level 3 on the Torino scale. The communi…