C/1490 Y1

C/1490 Y1 is a comet that was recorded and observed across East Asia, particularly China and Korea, from December 1490 to February 1491. It is the parent body of the Quadrantids meteor shower.

C/1490 Y1

Discovery[1]
Discovery site	China
Discovery date	31 December 1490
Designations
Alternative designations	1491 I[2]
Orbital characteristics[3][4]
Epoch	26 December 1490 (JD 2265638.47)
Observation arc	22 days
Number of observations	3
Aphelion	5.320 AU
Perihelion	0.769 AU
Semi-major axis	3.040 AU
Eccentricity	0.75000
Orbital period	5.30 years
Inclination	70.200°
Longitude of ascending node	283.00°
Argument of periapsis	164.00°
Last perihelion	24 December 1490 (observed)
Next perihelion	Uncertain (Presumed periodic)
Physical characteristics[1]
Apparent magnitude	5.4 (1491 apparition)

Orbit

John Russell Hind,^[5] Benjamin Peirce, and Ichiro Hasegawa^[6] made the initial orbital calculations for the comet, which all resulted in a parabolic trajectory around the Sun.^[1]