C/1986 P1 (Wilson)
< C
Wilson's Comet photographed by the European Southern Observatory on 28 March 1987. | |
| Discovery | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Christine D. Wilson |
| Discovery site | Palomar Observatory |
| Discovery date | 5 August 1986 |
| Designations | |
| 1987 VII, 1986l | |
| Orbital characteristics | |
| Epoch | 29 January 1987 (JD 2446824.5) |
| Observation arc | 2.68 years |
| Earliest precovery date | 4 August 1986 |
| Number of observations | 671 |
| Perihelion | 1.199 AU |
| Eccentricity | 1.00031 |
| Inclination | 147.12° |
| 111.67° | |
| Argument of periapsis | 238.31° |
| Mean anomaly | –0.0003° |
| Last perihelion | 20 April 1987 |
| Earth MOID | 0.391 AU |
| Jupiter MOID | 0.027 AU |
| Physical characteristics | |
Mean radius | < 5.0–7.0 km (A) (upper limit) |
| 0.04 (assumed) | |
| Comet total magnitude (M1) | 5.3 |
| Comet nuclear magnitude (M2) | 11.8 |
| 4.8 (1987 apparition) | |
Comet Wilson, formally designated as C/1986 P1, is a hyperbolic comet that was observed to split into two fragments in February 1988. It is the only comet discovered by Canadian–American physicist, Christine D. Wilson.