Shadow Path
P445.3 Prediction
(as of: 2007 03 08)
Shadow Path |
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| The northern limit, centerline, and southern limit of Pluto's shadow are shown by the three lines across the globe pictured below. The shaded area represents where the sun is more than 12 degrees below the horizon. | |
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P445.3 Prediction (as of: 2007 03 08) |
| Geocentric Mid-time (yyyy month dd hh:mm:ss) | 2007 March 18 10:57:10 UT |
| Minimum Geocentric Separation | 0.276± 0.022 arcsec |
| Position Angle (Pluto relative to the star; measured north through east) | –15.99 degrees |
| Geocentric Velocity | 7.0 km/sec |
| Prediction Version | P445.3-AST-1.6 |
| Reference star position: (UCAC2, at epoch of event) |
RA (h:m:s; J2000) | Dec (d:m:s; J2000) | UCAC Mag1 |
| P445.3 | 17 55 05.6914 | –16 28 34.465 | 15.3 |
| P445.3 Corrected | 17 55 05.6935 | –16 28 34.355 | |
| 1The
UCAC bandpass (579-642nm) is between V and R |
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| Offsets
from Reference Position/Ephemeris2 |
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| Body | RA (arcsec) | Dec (arcsec) | Notes |
P445.3 |
+0.031± 0.017 | +0.122± 0.016 | From 28 strip scans |
| Pluto | –0.074± 0.016 | +0.087± 0.016 | From 13 strip scans |
| 2All
"offsets" are defined in the ("corrected" - "reference")
or ("observed" - "catalog") sense. IE offsets should
be added to reference positions. |
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Discussion
On March 18th, 2007, Pluto will occult P445.3 (= 2UCAC 25823784; as originally published in McDonald & Elliot, 2000; Table). The following prediction results from the analysis of 42 strip scans obtained at the Lowell Observatory Astrograph by MIT observers during 2005-2007. These are compared with an offset to the light-time corrected, geocentric JPL Horizon's ephemeris (System DE413 - Pluto source file; PLU013; Earth center source file; DE405) determined by comparing the Pluto system barycenter to the measured barycenter from the strips. Proper motion has been applied up to the time of the occultation (according to the UCAC2 catalog, dRA: –10.8 ± 8.0 mas/yr, dDec: –21.4 ± 7.9 mas/yr). The offsets between the measured RA and Dec of P445.3 and its UCAC2 values at the time of the event are also given in the table.
Prediction Notes
Archive of all P445.3 occultation predictions based on alternate sources of data, including past predictions
P445.3 Occultation Predictions for Individual Sites
| Site | East Longitude | Latitude | Distance3 (km) | Pluto Immersion (UT) | Mid-Time (UT) | Pluto Emersion (UT) |
| JPL Table Mountain | –117 40 54 | 34 22 54 | 1101 | 10:50:01 | 10:51:11 | 10:52:21 |
| Flagstaff | –111 44 23 | 35 11 02 | 1055 | 10:50:52 | 10:52:16 | 10:53:40 |
| Magdalena Ridge Obs. | –107 11 05 | 33 58 36 | 1145 | 10:52:01 | 10:52:54 | 10:53:47 |
| Mt. Graham | –111 39 54 | 35 12 12 | 1054 | 10:50:52 | 10:52:17 | 10:53:42 |
| Mt. Hopkins | –110 53 04 | 31 41 19 | 1272 | ---------- | 10:51:44 | ---------- |
| Palomar | –116 51 54 | 33 21 24 | 1163 | 10:50:25 | 10:51:09 | 10:51:52 |
| Geocentric | ---------- | --------- | 6445 | ---------- | 10:57:10 | ---------- |
3"Distance" refers to the closest approach distance of the "Site" to the center of Pluto's shadow.
Please direct all inquiries to Planetary Astronomy Lab (planetary-astronomy@mit.edu)
Last updated by Carlos A Zuluaga (czuluaga@mit.edu) 2007-03-14 01:30
