C/1974 V2 (Bennett)

For the 1969–1970 comet of the same name, see C/1969 Y1 (Bennett).

Comet Bennett, formally designated as C/1974 V2, is a non-periodic comet that was seen in 1974. During its most recent perihelion, the comet was observed to split apart and disintegrate.^[5]

C/1974 V2 (Bennett)

Discovery[1]
Discovered by	John Caister Bennett
Discovery site	Pretoria, South Africa
Discovery date	13 November 1974
Designations
Alternative designations	1974h[2] 1974 XV
Orbital characteristics[3]
Epoch	19 November 1974 (JD 2442370.5)
Observation arc	10 days
Number of observations	14
Aphelion	19,270 AU
Perihelion	0.8646 AU
Semi-major axis	9,635 AU
Eccentricity	0.99991
Orbital period	945,833 years
Max. orbital speed	45.3 km/s
Inclination	134.827°
Longitude of ascending node	51.348°
Argument of periapsis	324.967°
TJupiter	–0.812
Earth MOID	0.0356 AU
Jupiter MOID	0.8857 AU
Physical characteristics[4]
Comet total magnitude (M1)	10.0
Apparent magnitude	8.5 (1974 apparition)

Discovery and observations

On the morning of 13 November 1974, John Caister Bennett discovered his second comet as a diffuse 9th-magnitude object in the constellation Hydra using a 125 mm (4.9 in) refractor from Pretoria, South Africa.^[a] He had spent a total of 482 hours searching for a new comet since his first discovery in 1969. At the time, the comet had no discernible coma nor tail, however Bennett was of the opinion it experienced an outburst lasting about five days just before discovery^[6]