Useful Links
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Observer tools
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NEO
Confirmation page (NEOCP) |
Ephemerides configurable for your observatory for newly discovered
NEOs, comets and other interesting objects.
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MPC
Ephemeris Service (MPES) |
Ephemerides configurable for your observatory for all minor planets
and comets.
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NEOfixer |
Provides independent predictions for objects currently on the MPC's
NEO Confirmation page (NEOCP). NEOfixer aims to help optimize the discovery and follow-up of
Near-Earth Objects (NEOs) by providing observers with targeting
recommendations, specific to their site. Observers can contribute by
sending status information about the objects they are targeting to
NEOfixer.
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Scout |
Provides independent predictions for objects currently on the MPC's
NEO Confirmation page (NEOCP)
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NEOCC
Priority List |
NEO planning tool classifying the need to observe NEOs especially
newly discovered objects into four categories, urgent, necessary, useful
and low priority
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MPC
NEAObs |
NEA Observation Planning Aid from the Minor
Planet Center.
Build a customised list of NEOs by specifying a number of selection
parameters, including the current sky uncertainty, to help choose NEOs
to observe that require astrometry.
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NEODys
Risk page |
Similar listings from NEODys and JPL of currently
observable and lost NEOs with possible impact solutions, generally where
the orbital elements are not known very accurately and therefore require
further observations urgently.
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JPL Risk page
(SENTRY) |
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Minor
Planet Checker |
The Minor Planet Center provide this page for observers to check
whether an object is a previously known minor planet. Enter the RA and Dec
(or paste in a standard MPC formatted observation) and the page will list
known minor planets in the vicinity at the time (but note
that Minor Planets observed at only one opposition that have not been seen
for several years are not included, so always send in
suspects to the MPC for full checking)
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NEO Rating Page |
Given two or more observations of a moving object this page calculates
the probability of it being a Near Earth Object. Scores of 50% or more
are required for an object to be included on the NEO Confirmation Page (NEOCP).
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Community
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Asteroid/Comet Connection (A/CC)
The
Tracking News (formally
Major News about Minor Objects) |
Daily news of astrometry published by the IAU MPC from professionals &
amateur observers around the world + Risk monitoring results. Published
by Bill Allen. The Asteroid/Comet Connection News pages
published until 16 September 2007 (but still available on the A/CC site)
have given a very interesting account of issues about currently
observable objects, together with plenty of background.
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Asteroid/Comet Connection (A/CC)
Earth's Busy Neighborhood. |
For Near Earth objects currently within 10 Lunar Distances of the
Earth a graphic is provided showing positions on the sky, together with
detailed information on each object.
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Asteroid/Comet Connection
Observatory Links |
Very comprehensive listings of the web sites of
observatories involved in astrometry. Presented alphabetically and by
country.
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Minor
Planet Mailing List (MPML)
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Discussion forum "for the active Asteroid and
Comet researcher... provides a way for researchers in this communitiy at
all levels an opportunity to share information, astrometric and
photometric techniques or to request specific observations of various
objects"
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Comets
Mailing List |
Discussion forum "for observers and anyone else
interested in comets. This includes discussion about visual,
photographic and CCD observing as well as about astrometric, orbital,
photometric, hunting or historical aspects."
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Starlust |
Informative and easy-to-read articles aimed at amateur astronomers,
created by Tom Urbain. A wide range of subjects are covered, including useful guides on
choosing a telescope, plenty of observing guides and more. Check out his
Periodic Table of Deep-Sky Objects!
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British
Astronomical Association |
Supporting amateur astronomers since 1890
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Reference
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Guide
to Minor Body Astrometry |
The Minor Planet Center's guide to starting an astrometric program.
Essential reading for budding astrometrists.
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Small-Body Database Lookup |
JPL tool providing information for comets and asteroids including
close approaches, physical parameters, orbital elements and diagrams
etc. |
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Recent
MPECs |
The 100 most recent MPC Electronic Circulars (MPECs) and access to
previous MPECs, giving details of astrometry, orbital elements and
summary ephemerides of NEOs and comets
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Previous NEO Confirmation Page
Objects |
Archived contents of the MPC's
Previous
NEO Confirmation Page Objects page (which only provides details for
the last few months). The archived list contains details from 2002 to
the present (a few gaps are indicated within the list).
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Editorial Notices & Announcements published by
the MPC in MPECs |
A compilation of Notices and Announcements published in the Minor
Planet Center's Electronic Circulars that are otherwise difficult to locate.
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MPEC stats |
A useful set of pages produced by Jost Jahn, analysing MPC Electronic Circulars (MPECs) in
various ways.
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