255P/Levy, formerly P/2006 T1 and P/2011 Y1, is a periodic

comet A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that, when passing close to the Sun, warms and begins to release gases, a process that is called outgassing. This produces a visible atmosphere or coma, and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena ...

with an orbital period of 5.25 years. It last came to

perihelion An apsis (; ) is the farthest or nearest point in the orbit of a planetary body about its primary body. For example, the apsides of the Earth are called the aphelion and perihelion. General description There are two apsides in any elli ...

(closest approach to the Sun) on 14 January 2012. During the 2006 passage the comet achieved an

apparent magnitude Apparent magnitude () is a measure of the brightness of a star or other astronomical object observed from Earth. An object's apparent magnitude depends on its intrinsic luminosity, its distance from Earth, and any extinction of the object's ...

of ~9.5. Levy (PK06T010) was believed to have been recovered on 3 June 2011 at magnitude 19.8, but other observatories were unable to confirm a recovery. It was most likely a false positive because of large residuals. Levy was recovered on 17 December 2011 at magnitude 19.8, and given the second designation 2011 Y1. It was then numbered. It came to perihelion on 14 January 2012 at a distance of 1.007 AU from the Sun. The comet passed the Earth on 2012-Jan-26 at a distance of . During the 2012 passage the comet was originally expected to reach an apparent magnitude of 7, but the comet had been in outburst in 2006 and was much dimmer than expected when it was recovered in 2011. MPC estimates after the 2011 recovery estimated that it would reach a magnitude of 17, and it had an elongation of 90°. However, CCD images showed it was diffuse and the comet's magnitude was estimated at 14.1 on 30 December 2011. The comet was not observed during the 2017 perihelion passage. At

opposition Opposition may refer to: Arts and media * ''Opposition'' (Altars EP), 2011 EP by Christian metalcore band Altars * The Opposition (band), a London post-punk band * '' The Opposition with Jordan Klepper'', a late-night television series on Com ...

in August 2016 it would have been dimmer than magnitude 19. 255P/Levy currently has an Earth-

MOID Minimum orbit intersection distance (MOID) is a measure used in astronomy to assess potential close approaches and collision risks between astronomical objects. It is defined as the distance between the closest points of the osculating orbits of ...

of .

References

External links

Orbital simulation
from JPL (Java)
Horizons Ephemeris

Elements and Ephemeris for 255P/Levy
–

Minor Planet Center The Minor Planet Center (MPC) is the official body for observing and reporting on minor planets under the auspices of the International Astronomical Union (IAU). Founded in 1947, it operates at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. Function T ...

P/2006 T1 (Levy)
at the

's Database
255P/Levy
- Seiichi Yoshida @ aerith.net (with pictures taken by different astronomers around the world)

as seen at the Great Shefford Observatory in 2006 {{DEFAULTSORT:Levy, 255P Periodic comets 255P 0255 255P Levy Comets in 2017 20061002