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Re: IN SYMPATHY to the Hale-Bopp Cooperative


Article: <5fsqfa$jcf@sjx-ixn10.ix.netcom.com>
From: saquo@ix.netcom.com(Nancy )
Subject: Re: IN SYMPATHY to the Hale-Bopp Cooperative
Date: 8 Mar 1997 22:50:18 GMT

In article <5fpu6e$buh@pollux.cmc.ec.gc.ca> Greg Neills writes:
>> JPL announced new Orbital Elements on May 28, 1996,
>> which they said were based on observations of the
>> mythical Hale-Bopp up to May 25, 1996. So they were
>> stating that they OBSERVED Hale-Bopp at Dec -15!
>> Then on June 27, 1996, they said based on
>> OBSERVATIONS up to June 23, 1996, that they decided
>> Hale-Bopp was not 3 arc minutes away, at Dec -12,
>> saquo@ix.netcom.com
>
> If the ephemeris prediction is off by some small amount
> from an actual observation, but a new ephemeris makes
> a closer fit to that observation, then I say, well done!
> ynecgan@cmc.doe.ca (Greg Neill)

Greg, let me try once again.

1. JPL laid out new Orbital Elements on May 28, 1996, based on OBSERVATIONS up through May 23, 1996. Does this not mean that they OBSERVED Hale-Bopp at Dec -15? They were telling folks they could find a comet they were calling Hale-Bopp there, no problem! Did they say "thereabouts"? Nope.
   
2. JPL came back on June 27, 1996, a mere month later, saying they had OBSERVED Hale-Bopp some more, up through June 25, 1996, and per the corrected Orbital Elements placed it at Dec -12, not only for June 27 but also for May 28. So they had it jumping away from Jupiter, while under observation!

I'm not asking for a mountain of detail to be examined. Just this one month, and the observations from May 23 to June 25, 1996, that resulting in a 3 arc minute leap AWAY from Jupiter, and a tightened eccentricity!