The Minor Planet Bulletin BULLETIN OF THE MINOR PLANETS SECTION OF THE ASSOCIATION OF LUNAR AND PLANETARY OBSERVERS
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The Minor Planet Bulletin is the journal for almost all amateurs and even some professionals for publishing
asteroid photometry results, including lightcurves, H-G parameters, color indexes, and shape/spin axis models.
It is considered to be a refereed journal by the SAO/NASA ADS.
All MPB papers are indexed in the ADS.
Print subscriptions are no longer available to individuals. Institutions (e.g., college libraries) can still
obtain print copies via a special subscription. See details in MPB 37-4 or contact the editor, Richard Binzel.
Annual voluntary contributions of $5.00 or more in support of the publication are welcome.
Please send a check, drawn on a U.S. bank and payable in U.S. funds, to "Minor Planet Bulletin" and send it to:
Minor Planet Bulletin
c/o Melissa Hayes-Gehrke
UMD Astronomy Department
1113 PSC Bldg 415
College Park, MD 20742
Authors Guide and Word Templates
(v.3.0: updated 2024 February 2)
The ZIP file contains the Authors Guide PDF as well as a "starter" paper in Word 2007+ (DOTX).
Those using Word 97 (DOC/DOT) are encouraged to download
OpenOffice and convert their files to
the most recent Word format (DOCX). Please read this updated guide since there are a number of changes from previous guides.
A new, optional, table is available for those wanting to include physical and
discovery information
in a more accessible way.
See the announcement in Minor Planet Bulletin51-2.
The Pts column is no longer required and has been removed from the template for the standard
table
to allow more room for the other columns.
The phase column should have only two values: for the first and last date in the range.
If the phase reaches an extrema between those dates, put an asterisk before the first value.
For example,
*7.2,13.7.
Use semicolons to separate names in the references section. For example:
Smith, J.J.; Jones, A.A. (2019).
This also applies if using several references to the same author in the text. For example:
"This asteroid was observed at three previous apparitions (Jones, 2015; 2017; 2018)..."
Issues for the upcoming quarter-year are released on about the 21st of March, June, September, and December.
Full issues and individual papers from vol 1 (1973) to present are available via links on this page.
Important: If the ADS bibcode and "Download PDF" links are missing for the latest issue, it is because the ADS has
not processed the files. The links will be made available after the ADS processes the files.
If the "Download PDF" link is visible and there is no PDF available, clicking the link will download an arbitrary
page. We are working with ADS to make sure all papers are available and, if not, being able to diasable the link.
The "Download Full Issue" link does retrieve the correct file.
Vol 1-7 run Jul-Jun. Vol 8-present run Jan-Dec. Only papers indexed in the ADS are included.
Earlier volumes often contain more papers than listed here. It's recommended to download the
full issue in vol 1-9.
A list is presented of minor planets which are much brighter than usual at their 1984 oppositions. Several planets for which observations are especially useful are individually detailed, including the closest approach of 2101 Adonis, as found by Edwin Goffin, until the year 2036.
Three European Space Agency satellites capable of observing minor planets are reviewed. One, IRAS, has alreadv been launched. The second, Hipparcos, is scheduled for launch in 1986, while the third, AGORA, is currentlv being considered.
Asteroids Targeted for Arecibo Radar Observations in 1984
A list of radar targets currently planned for Arecibo observations in 1984 is presented to encourage observers to obtain supporting physical observations. Photoelectric lightcurves are especially needed to fully interpret the radar data.
The table below lists asteroids which come to opposition during the months of December 1983 - April 1984 that represent useful targets for photoelectric photometry observations. Observations are needed because the asteroid has either an unknown or ambiguous rotational period or because the asteroid will be observable at a very low phase angle.
Rarely do the newly named asteroids outnumber the newly numbered ones in any given month, but such was the case in September when 26 asteroids received names.
Photoelectric Investigations of Asteroids: Selected Observational Programs for 1984
In a preceding paper (Zappala, 1983), the significant contribution that small and/or medium size telescopes can still give in photoelectric observations of asteroids was emphasized. In particular, a program to determine rotational axes by means of complete and accurate V-lightcurves obtained at small phase angles was described.
