IOTA/IOTA-ES occultation update for
(9) Metis/TYC 4970 00630 event on 1999 Apr 29/30
visible from Russia, Finland, Sweden, Norway
Summary
The nearly 200 km large asteroid (9) Metis will occult a 9.5 mag star shortly before midnight (UT) 1999 Apr 29/30. The occultation path will cross Russia, southern Finland, Sweden, Norway, and Greenland (see also attached map). However, observers in nearby countries such as Denmark or Poland are also encouraged to monitor the event, since the occultation path will more than 200 km large. The observation will be rather difficult since the magnitude drop will be only 0.9 mag (Metis has V=9.8 mag) and the nearly full moon is nearby. This update pretty well confirms Edwin Goffin's nominal prediction.
This prediction is based on an orbit of currently very high quality obatined from Hipparcos, TMO, and USNO positions) and the ACT position of the star. The uncertainty of the prediction is estimated to be less than 0.1".
------------------------------------------------------------------------- Martin Federspiel ******** E-mail: martin@astro.unibas.ch Astronomisches Institut ******** oder: federspi@astro.unibas.ch der Universitaet Basel **** oder: federspielm@ubaclu.unibas.ch Venusstr. 7 Telefon: (CH)-61/2055413 CH-4102 Binningen (Schweiz) Fax: (CH)-61/2055455 -------------------------------------------------------------------------