 Comet 240P/NEAT photographed from theZwicky Transient Facility on 12 December 2018. | |
| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | K. J. Lawrence |
| Discovery site | NEAT–Palomar |
| Discovery date | 7 December 2002 |
| Designations | |
| P/2002 X2, P/2010 P1 | |
| Orbital characteristics[4] | |
| Epoch | 21 November 2025 (JD 2461000.5) |
| Observation arc | 22.99 years |
| Earliestprecovery date | 5 October 2002 |
| Number of observations | 3,401 |
| Aphelion | 5.602 AU |
| Perihelion | 2.12162 AU (A)[2] 2.12174 AU (B)[3] |
| Semi-major axis | 3.861 AU |
| Eccentricity | 0.4506 |
| Orbital period | 7.59 years |
| Inclination | 23.54° |
| 74.91° | |
| Argument of periapsis | 352.08° |
| Last perihelion | 15 May 2018 |
| Next perihelion | 19 December 2025 (B+A)[3][2] |
| TJupiter | 2.758 (A+B) |
| EarthMOID | 1.145 AU (A) 1.137 AU (B) |
| JupiterMOID | 0.242 AU (A) 0.235 AU (B) |
| Physical characteristics[7] | |
Mean radius | 2.665 km (1.656 mi)[5] (original nucleus) |
| Comet total magnitude (M1) | 10.3 |
| 12.0[6] (2025-11-20) | |
240P/NEAT is aJupiter-family comet with an orbital period of 7.61 years. It was discovered byNear Earth Asteroid Tracking (NEAT) on 7 December 2002.[1]
The comet cameopposition on 22 November 2025, and will come toperihelion on 19 December 2025 when it should be around magnitude 12-13.[8]
The comet at discovery had an apparent magnitude of 18.4, and further observations revealed it had a coma about 8 arcseconds across and a tail 14 arcseconds long.[1] The comet was spotted inprediscovery images dating from 5 October and 6 December byLONEOS and from 5 November by NEAT. Based on these observations it was recognised it is a periodic comet with an orbital period of 8.1 years.[1] The comet was recovered independently by H. Taylor, H. Sato,Leonid Elenin, and T. Yusa on 9, 10, 11, and 11 August 2010 respectively, at an estimated magnitude of around 17.[9][10]
The comet had a close approach toJupiter on 10 July 2007 at a distance of 0.252 AU (37.7 million km)[7] which reduced the orbital period to 7.6 years and the perihelion distance from 2.5 to 2.1 AU.[11] The comet experienced three events of significant brightening which last for three to six months during its next two perihelia, on March-April 2011, July-August 2018,[12] and on November-December 2018. The events more likely are the result of the warming of previously insulated material due to the reduction of the perihelion distance. The new activity takes place in one or two locations of the nucleus.[13]
_with_its_fragment_%2522B%2522_-_54950308748.png)
On 3 October 2025 fragment 240P-B was imaged byKitt Peak and reported by V. Carvajal.[14] 240P-B should also come to perihelion on 19 December 2025,[3] about 14 minutes before the main body and about 0.00007 AU (10,000 km; 6,500 mi) farther from the Sun.
| Fragment | Perihelion time | Perihelion distance |
|---|---|---|
| 240P-B[3] | 2025-Dec-19 23:00 | 2.12169 AU (317,400,000 km; 197,223,000 mi) |
| 240P-A[2] | 2025-Dec-19 23:14 | 2.12162 AU (317,390,000 km; 197,217,000 mi) |
| Numbered comets | ||
|---|---|---|
| Previous 239P/LINEAR | 240P/NEAT | Next 241P/LINEAR |
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