C/2015 G2 (MASTER)

For other comets discovered by the Mobile Astronomical System of Telescope-Robots, see Comet MASTER.

C/2015 G2 (MASTER) is a comet discovered April 7, 2015 by MASTER, the Mobile Astronomical System of the Telescope-Robots at the South African Astronomical Observatory (SAAO).^[2] It was the first comet discovered from South Africa in 35 years.^[3]

C/2015 G2 (MASTER)

Discovery
Discovered by	MASTER
Discovery date	7 April 2015
Orbital characteristics
Epoch	21 April 2015 (JD 2457133.5)
Observation arc	54 days
Number of observations	230
Perihelion	0.779879 AU
Eccentricity	1.00045 (1950) 1.00085 (2015) 1.00078 (2050)
Inclination	147.5613°
Last perihelion	23 May 2015
Next perihelion	Ejection
Physical characteristics[1]
Dimensions	1.8–2.2 km (1.1–1.4 mi)
Mean diameter	2.0 km (1.2 mi)
Comet total magnitude (M1)	11.6±1.0
Comet nuclear magnitude (M2)	14.5±0.9
Apparent magnitude	6.0 (2015 apparition)

Discovery was confirmed April 10, 2015 by the Minor Planet Center.^[3] It was at magnitude 10.7 at discovery and by mid-May it had reached magnitude 6.0.^[4]