| Discovery | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | Carl W. Hergenrother |
| Discovery date | November 22, 1998 |
| Designations | |
| P/1998 W2 P/2005 N2 | |
| Orbital characteristics | |
| Epoch | March 6, 2006 |
| Aphelion | 5.839 AU |
| Perihelion | 1.426 AU |
| Semi-major axis | 3.632 AU |
| Eccentricity | 0.6075 |
| Orbital period | 6.923 a |
| Inclination | 21.8934° |
| Last perihelion | October 1, 2012[1] November 2, 2005 |
| Next perihelion | August 5, 2019[2] |
168P/Hergenrother is a periodic comet in the solar system. The comet originally named P/1998 W2 returned in 2005 and got the temporary name P/2005 N2.[3]
The comet came to perihelion on 1 October 2012,[1] and was expected to reach about apparent magnitude 15.2, but due to an outburst the comet reached apparent magnitude 8.[4] As a result of the outburst of gas and dust, the comet was briefly more than 500 times brighter than it would have been without the outburst.[5] Images by the 2 m (79 in) Faulkes Telescope North on 26 October 2012 confirm a fragmentation event.[6] The secondary fragment was about magnitude 17.
![{\displaystyle ({\sqrt[{5}]{100}})^{15.2-8}\approx 758}](https://wikimedia.org/api/rest_v1/media/math/render/svg/b7f0eead17b768506983eda9da2f7d51117084c5)
{{cite web}}: External link in |author=
| Numbered comets | ||
|---|---|---|
| Previous 167P/CINEOS |
168P/Hergenrother | Next 169P/NEAT |
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