Format For Astrometric Observations Of Comets, Minor Planets and Natural Satellites
Astrometric observations of comets, minor planets and natural satellites submitted for publication in the Minor Planet Circulars (MPCs), Minor Planet Electronic Circulars and IAU Circulars are represented by one or more 80-column records. The format differs depending on whether the observation is optical (photographic, CCD or visual), radar or satellite-based. Related links:- References
- Packed provisional designations
- Alphabetic notes for observations
- Observatory codes
- You should also ensure that you have read this Guide to Minor-Body Astrometry
mpc@cfa.harvard.edu.
Observations must be sent unencoded as plain text. In particular, users
of MIME-compliant mailers are asked not to use BinHex/Base64
encoding! Encoded messages are not decoded by the automated processing
routines (a deliberate design decision), so any encoded observation batches
will not be recognized as containing observations and will be deleted.
