- 6Q0B44E
6Q0B44E, sometimes abbreviated to B44E, is a small object, probably an item of
space debris , currently orbiting theEarth outside the orbit of theMoon .6Q0B44E was first observed by
Catalina Sky Survey researchers at theLunar and Planetary Laboratory of theUniversity of Arizona on28 August 2006 . The sighting was confirmed the next day by observations at theSiding Spring Survey andTable Mountain Observatory .Distant Artificial-Satellites Observers Circulars, [http://cfa-www.harvard.edu/~gwilliams/DASO/000000/DASO_000063.txt DASO Circular No. 63] ,29 August 2006 ]The object is just a few metres across and has been provisionally classified as artificial. B44E orbits the earth between 585,000 and 983,000 km, which is 2 to 3 times the distance of the Moon's orbit, over a period of 80 days.
The Guardian , Spacewatch,6 September 2006 ]B44E was spotted at what is believed to be the brightest part of its orbit, at the 19th magnitude. As the object moves away from the Earth, its brightness will fall on a six-month cycle down to the 28th magnitude, severely limiting study of its composition.Bill Gray, [http://home.gwi.net/~pluto/mpecs/6q0b44e.htm Pseudo-MPEC for 6Q0B44E] ,
3 September 2006 ]Ephemerides calculated from the observations suggest that B44E probably entered the Earth-Moon system between 2001 and 2003, although it may have arrived up to a decade earlier. Similarities between the discoveries of B44E andJ002E3 , now believed to be part of theApollo 12 rocket, have led some astronomers to speculate that B44E may be another relic of human space exploration which has returned to Earth orbit.References
External links
* [http://cfa-www.harvard.edu/iau/SpaceJunk/SpaceJunk.html The Distant Artificial Satellites Observation Page] , accessed
6 September 2006
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