C/1969 T1 (Tago–Sato–Kosaka)

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C/1969 T1
(Tago–Sato–Kosaka)
Comet Tago–Sato–Kosaka photographed from Cerro Tololo on 30 December 1969
Discovery
Discovered byAkihiko Tago
Yasuo Sato
Kozo Kosaka
Discovery siteJapan
Discovery date10 October 1969
Designations
1969 IX, 1969g
Orbital characteristics
Epoch21 January 1970 (JD 2440607.5)
Observation arc305
Number of
observations
175 days
Aphelion~12,800 AU
Perihelion0.4726 AU
Semi-major axis~6,400 AU
Eccentricity0.99992
Orbital period~512,000 years
Avg. orbital speed57.16 km/s
Max. orbital speed61.3 km/s
Inclination75.818°
109.660°
Argument of
periapsis
267.834°
Last perihelion21 December 1969
TJupiter0.210
Earth MOID0.0006 AU
Jupiter MOID3.4637 AU
Physical characteristics
Mean radius
2.20±0.27 km
0.63±0.13
Comet total
magnitude
(M1)
6.5
3.5
(1970 apparition)

Comet Tago–Sato–Kosaka, formally designated as C/1969 T1, is a non-periodic comet that became visible in the naked eye between late 1969 and early 1970. It was the first comet ever observed by an artificial satellite, OAO-2.