178P/Hug–Bell

178P/Hug–Bell is a periodic comet in the Solar System. It was discovered by Northeast Kansas Amateur Astronomers' League members Gary Hug and Graham Bell and is thought to be the first periodic comet to be discovered by amateurs. It was declared a comet less than two days after its initial discovery, after having its course confirmed on previous images.^[4]

178P/Hug-Bell

Discovery
Discovered by	Gary Hug and Graham E. Bell
Discovery date	December 10, 1999
Designations
Alternative designations	1999 X1, 2006 O1
Orbital characteristics
Epoch	July 7, 2013
Aphelion	5.405 AU
Perihelion	1.9337 AU
Semi-major axis	3.6993 AU
Eccentricity	0.4730
Orbital period	7.03 a
Inclination	10.9755°
Last perihelion	2020-Jul-16[1] July 23, 2013[2] July 6, 2006
Next perihelion	2027-Jun-21[3]

Hug-Bell's orbital period is about seven years; its orbit is eccentric, though less so than many comets. Hug-Bell's orbit lies entirely outside the orbit of Mars, but at its aphelion overlaps in solar distance with the orbit of Jupiter. Because it never comes closer to the Sun than about 2 AU, it is never expected to be a very bright comet, with a typical perihelion magnitude of 18–19.^[5]