2024-04-05, 06:20 PM
Hi Greg,
It looks like the epoch of 2024 Apr 1 13h54m40s is coming from the ASTORB data that you use to create the Current Bright and Interesting MPs Observing List each month. The MPC still appears to be using 2024 Mar 31 00h00m00s. That's the epoch that I got for 2024 GO today when I did a download of the elements for that newly discovered NEO that wasn't in the NEAs at Today's Epoch datafile yet. That solves that question. Thanks.
It's really bad that the MPC's elements are so bad that the predictions for the positions of main belt objects are inacurrate. That's sort of their primary job to keep that info up to date. At least it used to be. Their 'standard' epochs seem to be ~6 months apart (2023 Feb - 2023 Sep - 2024 Mar - 2024 Sep). I guess if they would switch to the next epoch about half way in between they would met your 90 day criterion, but just barely. Last year, the change from the February to the September epoch occurred in August rather than June-July.
Not much we can do, except complain I suppose. It is a massive computational effort.
Phil S.
It looks like the epoch of 2024 Apr 1 13h54m40s is coming from the ASTORB data that you use to create the Current Bright and Interesting MPs Observing List each month. The MPC still appears to be using 2024 Mar 31 00h00m00s. That's the epoch that I got for 2024 GO today when I did a download of the elements for that newly discovered NEO that wasn't in the NEAs at Today's Epoch datafile yet. That solves that question. Thanks.
It's really bad that the MPC's elements are so bad that the predictions for the positions of main belt objects are inacurrate. That's sort of their primary job to keep that info up to date. At least it used to be. Their 'standard' epochs seem to be ~6 months apart (2023 Feb - 2023 Sep - 2024 Mar - 2024 Sep). I guess if they would switch to the next epoch about half way in between they would met your 90 day criterion, but just barely. Last year, the change from the February to the September epoch occurred in August rather than June-July.
Not much we can do, except complain I suppose. It is a massive computational effort.
Phil S.