89P/Russell

For other comets discovered by Kenneth S. Russell, see Comet Russell.

89P/Russell is a periodic comet in the Solar System with a current orbital period of 7.26 years.^[3]

89P/Russell

Discovery
Discovered by	Kenneth S. Russell
Discovery site	Siding Spring Observatory
Discovery date	28 September 1980
Designations
MPC designation	P/1980 S1 P/1987 N1
Alternative designations	Russell 2 1980 III, 1987 XI 1994 XXIX 1980o, 1987q, 1994e
Orbital characteristics[1][2]
Epoch	5 May 2025 (JD 2460800.5)
Observation arc	44.39 years
Earliest precovery date	9 August 1980
Number of observations	656
Aphelion	5.279 AU
Perihelion	2.222 AU
Semi-major axis	3.751 AU
Eccentricity	0.40751
Orbital period	7.264 years
Inclination	12.072°
Longitude of ascending node	41.345°
Argument of periapsis	250.42°
Mean anomaly	54.870°
Last perihelion	26 March 2024
TJupiter	2.903
Earth MOID	1.239 AU
Jupiter MOID	0.741 AU
Physical characteristics[1]
Mean diameter	2.8 km (1.7 mi)
Comet total magnitude (M1)	8.2
Comet nuclear magnitude (M2)	16.3

Observational history

It was discovered on a photographic plate by Kenneth Russell of Siding Spring Observatory in New South Wales, Australia on 28 September 1980. Brightness was estimated at a magnitude of 17. The elliptical orbit calculated by Brian G. Marsden gave a perihelion date of 19 May 1980 and an orbital period of 7.12 years.

It has been observed on each subsequent apparition, most recently in 2009. The next perihelion is computed as 14 December 2016.

See also

• List of numbered comets