| Parameter |
Value |
| Designation |
502P/NEAT |
| Type |
P |
| Perihelion (tp_cal, UTC) |
2025-08-05T23:40:46.439040Z |
| Orbit solution date (soln_date, UTC) |
2026-03-12T02:46:43Z |
| Obs used |
281 |
| NEO |
- |
| M1 |
7.100 |
| K1 |
15.000 |
| PC |
0.030 |
| Discovery observation (MPC, UTC) |
2025-04-23T10:52:57.561600Z |
| Discovery magnitude (MPC) |
20.32 G |
| Discovery observatory (MPC) |
G96 · Mt. Lemmon Survey |
Osculating Elements
| Parameter |
Value |
| Epoch (epoch_cal, TDB) |
2017-10-06.0000000 |
| e |
0.47091682 |
| q (au) |
4.259801 |
| a (au) |
8.051288 |
| i (deg) |
11.386402 |
| Ω (om, deg) |
264.572232 |
| ω (w, deg) |
37.192514 |
| M (ma, deg) |
236.569669 |
Magnitude
Scatter + Global Linear
$$
M_a = (10.043 + 6.000\cdot 2.5\log_{10} r) + \epsilon - 2.5\log_{10}\Phi(\theta) + 5\log_{10}\Delta
$$
$$
\theta = 180^\circ - \alpha
$$
$$
\Phi(\theta) = \frac{\delta_{90} D(\theta) + 1}{\delta_{90} + 1},\quad D(\theta) = k\cdot \Phi_{HG}(\theta; g_f) + (1-k)\cdot \Phi_{HG}(\theta; g_b)
$$
$$
\Phi_{HG}(\theta; g) = \left(\frac{1+g^2}{1+g^2-2g\cos\theta}\right)^{3/2},\quad \Phi_{HG}(90^\circ)=1
$$
Model Parameters
| Parameter |
Value |
| H0 |
10.043 |
| n |
6.000 |
| gf |
1.000 |
| gb |
-0.725 |
| k |
0.800 |
| δ90 |
10.000 |
| Parameter |
Symbol |
Range |
Description |
| Absolute magnitude at 1 AU from Sun and Earth |
H0 |
-5 to 20 |
Intrinsic brightness of the comet |
| Photometric slope parameter |
n |
2 to 6 |
Rate of brightness change with heliocentric distance |
| Forward scattering asymmetry factor |
gf |
0.8 to 1 |
Degree of forward scattering |
| Backward scattering asymmetry factor |
gb |
-1 to -0.5 |
Degree of backward scattering |
| Partitioning coefficient |
k |
0.8 to 1 |
Ratio between forward/backward scattering contributions |
| Dust-to-gas brightness ratio |
δ90 |
1 to 10 |
Relative contribution of dust scattering to gas emission |
Reference: EPSC-DPS2025-160
Residuals (Piecewise)
$$\epsilon = a \log_{10} r_{\mathrm{au}} + b$$
| Start (UTC) |
End (UTC) |
a |
b |
| 2024-07-01 |
2025-08-05 |
+24.7671 |
-15.558 |
log10 r = log10(heliocentric distance / AU), Δ = geocentric distance (AU)
Ephemeris
| Date/Time (UTC) |
RA (J2000) |
Dec (J2000) |
Nearest HIP |
Dist from HIP (arcmin) |
| 2026-05-12 00:00 |
23:08:02.23 |
+05:22:45.9 |
HIP 114288 |
12.26 |
| 2026-05-12 12:00 |
23:08:23.16 |
+05:26:03.8 |
HIP 114288 |
8.93 |
| 2026-05-13 00:00 |
23:08:43.98 |
+05:29:21.3 |
HIP 114288 |
9.24 |
| 2026-05-13 12:00 |
23:09:04.68 |
+05:32:38.4 |
HIP 114288 |
12.88 |
| 2026-05-14 00:00 |
23:09:25.25 |
+05:35:55.1 |
HIP 114288 |
17.90 |
| 2026-05-14 12:00 |
23:09:45.70 |
+05:39:11.4 |
HIP 114288 |
23.40 |
| 2026-05-15 00:00 |
23:10:06.03 |
+05:42:27.2 |
HIP 114470 |
23.27 |
| 2026-05-15 12:00 |
23:10:26.24 |
+05:45:42.5 |
HIP 114470 |
17.94 |
| 2026-05-16 00:00 |
23:10:46.32 |
+05:48:57.5 |
HIP 114470 |
13.21 |
| 2026-05-16 12:00 |
23:11:06.28 |
+05:52:11.9 |
HIP 114470 |
9.89 |
| 2026-05-17 00:00 |
23:11:26.11 |
+05:55:25.9 |
HIP 114470 |
9.54 |
| 2026-05-17 12:00 |
23:11:45.82 |
+05:58:39.4 |
HIP 114470 |
12.38 |
| 2026-05-18 00:00 |
23:12:05.39 |
+06:01:52.4 |
HIP 114470 |
16.82 |
| 2026-05-18 12:00 |
23:12:24.84 |
+06:05:04.9 |
HIP 114470 |
21.90 |
| 2026-05-19 00:00 |
23:12:44.16 |
+06:08:17.0 |
HIP 114588 |
23.37 |
| 2026-05-19 12:00 |
23:13:03.35 |
+06:11:28.5 |
HIP 114588 |
20.43 |
| 2026-05-20 00:00 |
23:13:22.41 |
+06:14:39.5 |
HIP 114588 |
18.83 |
| 2026-05-20 12:00 |
23:13:41.34 |
+06:17:50.0 |
HIP 114588 |
18.87 |
| 2026-05-21 00:00 |
23:14:00.14 |
+06:21:00.0 |
HIP 114588 |
20.52 |
| 2026-05-21 12:00 |
23:14:18.81 |
+06:24:09.5 |
HIP 114812 |
21.27 |
| 2026-05-22 00:00 |
23:14:37.34 |
+06:27:18.4 |
HIP 114812 |
20.39 |
| 2026-05-22 12:00 |
23:14:55.74 |
+06:30:26.8 |
HIP 114812 |
21.01 |
| 2026-05-23 00:00 |
23:15:14.00 |
+06:33:34.7 |
HIP 114891 |
16.37 |
| 2026-05-23 12:00 |
23:15:32.13 |
+06:36:42.0 |
HIP 114891 |
11.85 |
| 2026-05-24 00:00 |
23:15:50.13 |
+06:39:48.7 |
HIP 114891 |
8.56 |
| 2026-05-24 12:00 |
23:16:07.99 |
+06:42:54.9 |
HIP 114891 |
8.10 |
| 2026-05-25 00:00 |
23:16:25.71 |
+06:46:00.5 |
HIP 114891 |
10.78 |
| 2026-05-25 12:00 |
23:16:43.30 |
+06:49:05.5 |
HIP 114910 |
11.09 |
| 2026-05-26 00:00 |
23:17:00.74 |
+06:52:10.0 |
HIP 114910 |
10.56 |
| 2026-05-26 12:00 |
23:17:18.05 |
+06:55:13.9 |
HIP 114910 |
12.48 |
| 2026-05-27 00:00 |
23:17:35.22 |
+06:58:17.1 |
HIP 114910 |
15.96 |
| 2026-05-27 12:00 |
23:17:52.26 |
+07:01:19.8 |
HIP 114910 |
20.18 |
| 2026-05-28 00:00 |
23:18:09.15 |
+07:04:21.9 |
HIP 115137 |
19.60 |
| 2026-05-28 12:00 |
23:18:25.90 |
+07:07:23.4 |
HIP 115137 |
14.58 |
| 2026-05-29 00:00 |
23:18:42.50 |
+07:10:24.3 |
HIP 115137 |
9.70 |
| 2026-05-29 12:00 |
23:18:58.97 |
+07:13:24.5 |
HIP 115137 |
5.31 |
| 2026-05-30 00:00 |
23:19:15.29 |
+07:16:24.1 |
HIP 115137 |
3.72 |
| 2026-05-30 12:00 |
23:19:31.47 |
+07:19:23.1 |
HIP 115137 |
7.05 |
| 2026-05-31 00:00 |
23:19:47.51 |
+07:22:21.5 |
HIP 115137 |
11.62 |
| 2026-05-31 12:00 |
23:20:03.40 |
+07:25:19.2 |
HIP 115137 |
16.39 |
| 2026-06-01 00:00 |
23:20:19.14 |
+07:28:16.3 |
HIP 115137 |
21.19 |
| 2026-06-01 12:00 |
23:20:34.74 |
+07:31:12.7 |
HIP 115356 |
20.54 |
| 2026-06-02 00:00 |
23:20:50.19 |
+07:34:08.4 |
HIP 115356 |
16.30 |