April and May 2025 Confirmations
Dear All,
More comet confirmations! We will begin with SOHO:
Soho# Date/Time of Post Discoverer Tel Group Images of... ===================================================================== ... 4866 Dec08,24 08:55:22 T.Prestgard C2 Kreutz Dec07,24 ... 5190 Apr01,25 19:43:48 J.Ruan C3,G1,C2 Kreutz Apr01-03,25 5191 Apr08,25 00:14:53 E.Banach G1,C2 NonGrp Apr08,25 5192 Apr10,25 18:34:47 J.Ruan C3,G1,C2 Kreutz Apr10-12,25 5193 May09,25 02:42:31 E.Banach C2 Kreutz May09,25 5194 May09,25 05:16:34 J.Ruan C2 Kreutz May09,25 5195 May09,25 14:42:29 E.Banach C2 Kreutz May09,25 5196 May14,25 03:07:03 J.Ruan C2 Kreutz May15,25 5197 May21,25 09:56:11 J.Ruan C2 Kreutz May21,25 5198 May23,25 11:13:13 E.Banach C2 Kreutz May23,25 5199 May24,25 09:10:58 Z.Yang C2 Kreutz May24,25 5200 May24,25 23:29:36 Z.Yang G1,C2 Kreutz May25,25 5201 May27,25 18:30:59 Z.Yang C2 Kreutz May27,25 5202 May29,25 02:34:38 W.Boonplod C2 NonGrp May28-29,25 5203 May31,25 15:29:34 W.Boonplod C2 Kreutz May31,25 5204 Jun01,25 00:24:34 J.Ruan C2 Kreutz May31,25
And CCOR-1:
CCR1# Date/Time of Post Discoverer Tel Group Images of... Chat# ===================================================================== 0028 Apr01,25 19:41:27 J.Ruan G1 Kreutz Apr01,25 0029 Apr06,25 21:51:01 J.Ruan G1 Kreutz Apr06,25 0030 Apr06,25 09:21:14 J.Ruan G1,C3,C2 Kreutz Apr06-07,25 0031 Apr09,25 00:42:20 J.Ruan G1,C2 Kreutz Apr08-09,25 0032 Apr11,25 00:44:35 J.Ruan G1,C2 Kreutz Apr11-12,25 0033 Apr13,25 14:25:25 Z.Xu G1,C2 Kreutz Apr13-14,25 0034 Apr15,25 00:53:43 J.Ruan G1,C2 Kreutz Apr15,25 0035 Apr15,25 05:42:04 J.Ruan G1,C2 Kreutz Apr15,25 0036 Apr16,25 06:55:19 Z.Xu G1,C2 Kreutz Apr16,25 0037 Apr25,25 03:20:57 J.Ruan G1,C2 Kreutz Apr25,25 0038 Apr26,25 08:58:36 J.Ruan G1,C2 Kreutz Apr26-27,25 0039 Apr27,25 03:58:31 W.Boonplod G1,C2 Kreutz Apr26-27,25 0040 Apr27,25 14:44:40 E.Banach G1,C2 Kreutz Apr27-28,25 0041 May02,25 11:07:11 Z.Xu G1,C2 Kreutz May02,25 0042 May06,25 18:25:56 J.Ruan G1,C3,C2 Kreutz May06-08,25 0043 May13,25 18:37:14 J.Ruan G1,C2 Kreutz May13-14,25 0044 May15,25 11:40:32 J.Ruan G1,C2 Kreutz May15-16,25 0045 May21,25 19:25:41 J.Ruan G1,C2 Kreutz May21-22,25 0046 May22,25 12:04:58 Z.Xu G1,C3,C2 Kreutz May22-24,25 0047 May28,25 06:27:19 Z.Yang G1,C2 Kreutz May28-29,25 ---
Confirmation notes:
- I looked again at Trygve's report in December 2024, which listed the images as Dec08 but in fact was Dec 07, and I can now confirm it. I have placed it in the vacant SOHO-4866 spot, which is a little out of chronological sequence but not the first time I have done that. Many thanks to Eryk for persistently reminding me to look again at this comet!
- I cannot see anything at the report report_jr_20250405195321. I am using a slightly different coordinate system, but the offset from the reported coordinates to my coordinates is mostly fixed in place, so there is no obvious reason that I would be missing this one. I spent a long time looking, but failed to find it.
- Regarding report_jr_20250409004220 -- we appear to have a gap in the data during this time (at NRL), but I do see the files exist on the NOAA site. So I am not yet able to see/confirm the comet in the CCOR-1 images but I am very confident that it is there. So I will confirm this as a CCOR-1 comet, despite not having seen it in those images yet. I will work on transferring those files to our servers. (It is very easy to see in C2, so I do know it is a real comet.)
Like last time, lots of things to talk about...
First, I will apologize again for the delay in posting these. In addition to various other tasks getting in the way, the addition of CCOR-1 being
The good news is that I am finding a new rhythm with recording the CCOR-1 comets, and it is mostly not too complicated. It still does add extra time (~double!) for me to record a comet though, as I have to load in more data and run my point-and-click routine. If/when we end up with LASCO, CCOR-1, and CCOR-2 operating concurrently, this method may not be sustainable for me. So I am trying to think of ideas for how all of you can make extra contributions (with appropriate credit, of course) to help me record all the comet positions.
It seems that most of you must be using the same CCOR-1 images now (the NOAA FITS archive, I assume?), and that definitely helps me with your coordinates. But I will point out that we do maintain realtime mp4 movies of CCOR-1 images using our own background subtraction processes (f-corona model subtraction, and running difference). I think the plan is to eventually (soon?) also share the individual png frames that go into that file. So keep an eye on our CCOR-1 website for any announcements about that.
As you are probably aware, the CCOR-2 telescope launched earlier this year on the NOAA SWFO-L1 mission. My understanding is that we will be opening the telescope doors sometime in early 2026 and beginning the calibration/checkout process much like what happened for CCOR-1. I don't have a timeline on when that data will be available online (but if I had to guess... I would guess that one of you will find it online before I even know it's there -- as was the case with CCOR-1!). LASCO will continue to be operated to provide cross-calibration overlap, and I am not aware of a formal/official end-of-mission date yet. Of course, it's a 30yr old mission, so things can break/fail at any time, but currently it seems happy and healthy.
I have noticed that there seem to be far fewer LASCO C2 non-Kreutz comets being reported. It's possible that there simply were not any, but experience tells me that they are being overlooked because you are all focussing on the CCOR-1 Kreutz. That's fine and understandable, but it means there are almost certainly some non-Kreutz to be found in C2 (objects that are too close to the Sun for CCOR-1 to see them). These are much more difficult comets to find, but (often) scientifically more interesting. So if you just want a comet discovery of any kind, CCOR-1 Kreutz are the way to go. But if you want to find a comet that might end up in a science research paper, the C2 non-Kreutz are much more likely to get there...
Finally... I have mentioned once or twice in the past a concept called 'Sungrazer 2.0', which is my name for a refreshing/rebuilding of the Sungrazer project to modernize it and expand its reach. These kinds of things always unfold slowly, but progress is being made. To that end, we are looking for a handful of volunteers to test out a new online tool/platform. The task would involve testing out an interface, and giving feedback via a form to help us understand what does/does not work for you. If you are interested, please send me an email. (If I get more than 4 or 5 volunteers, I will randomly select, so please don't be offended if you don't end up getting the invite.) At this stage, the tool does not offer any kind of competitive advantage (probably the opposite!), but community feedback will be essential for turning it into something that works for everyone.
No doubt I am forgetting something, but this is enough for today. As always, please email me with any questions, comments, complaints, or concerns.
Karl