136P/Mueller (0136P)

Type: Periodic Perihelion date: 2 January 2025 Perihelion distance (q): 3.0 Aphelion distance (Q) : 5.4 Period (years): 8.6 Eccentricity (e): 0.29 Inclination (i): 9.4 JPL orbit diagram COBS lightcurve The comet was discovered by Jean Mueller at Palomar Observatoryd on 24 and 25 September 1990 in the course of the second Palomar Sky Survey. She estimated the magnitude as 18 and noted a faint tail extending westward. The comet remained at about magnitude 17.5 until mid-October. The comet was recovered by James V. Scotti (Lunar and Planetary Laboratory) on 24 May 1998 with the 0.91-m Spacewatch telescope on Kitt Peak at magnitude 21. It was recovered again in the apparition of 2007 by L. Donato, E. Guido, and G. Sostero (Remanzacco Observatory, Italy) on 21 July. Using a 45-cm Newtonian reflector and a CCD camera they observed a coma about 20" across and a broad tail nearly 15" long toward the southwest. The total magnitude was about 18.3, while the nuclear magnitude was about 18.9. An independent recovery was made by F. Fratev (Zvezdno Obshtestvo Observatory, Plana, Bulgaria) on images obtained on 22 July, using a 25-cm reflector and a CCD camera. They gave the nuclear magnitude as about 18.9. Observations (VEMag = visual equivalent magnitude) Date 10x10 mag Error VEmag Coma ' 30-Aug-16 18.21 0.09 17.0 0.2 06-Sep-16 18.25 0.04 17.1 0.2 25-Sep-16 18.02 0.08 16.5 0.2 02-Oct-16 17.92 0.04 16.6 0.2 28-Oct-16 17.68 0.02 16.5 0.2 22-Nov-16 18.10 0.02 16.1 0.2 19-Dec-16 18.75 0.16 18.0 0.2 06-Sep-24 19.2 0.4