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Comet 288P, which also bears the designation 2006 VW139, typical of asteroids, belongs to a
somewhat strange category of small solar system bodies which falls between comets and
asteroids. Objects that make up this group are called Main-belt comets or active asteroids
hence their often double designations. Like its marking, the object is also double and is
formed by a pair of bodies orbiting each other. In addition both fragments rotate. The team of
scientists composed of Wacław Waniak and Michał Drahus from the Astronomical
Observatory of the Jagiellonian University observed this intriguing object using two large
telescopes working in tandem: Keck II in Hawaii and Gemini-South in Chile. Thanks to the
obtained data an analysis of brightness changes over time was carried out.
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