Minor Planet Center Annex

SBN-MPC

The Minor Planet Center (MPC) is the world's (International Astronomical Union designated) nerve center for asteroid and comet observations, and has become a functional sub-node of the Small Bodies Node of the NASA Planetary Data System. The MPC collects, processes, and distributes all positional measurements, orbits, and discovery information for all minor planets and comets (and some natural satellites too). The MPC also alerts the NASA Planetary Defense Coordination Office and elements of the International Asteroid Warning Network (IAWN) of any potential for impact by newly discovered Near Earth Objects (NEOs), helping to coordinate worldwide observers.

The Minor Planet Center Annex at the SBN (SBN-MPC -- this site) provides ancillary products and support regarding the MPC.

MPC Asteroid Name/Citation Search

A simple tool to search the naming citations of named minor planets.
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MPC Database Status

The MPC creates copies of their database. The SBN is responsible for distributing these copies and related products to the community.

• statusDB -- Overall database status and time of the latest updates for all major data tables.
• obs24 -- All observations reported in the last 24 hours.
• obsCodes -- Date of the last reported observation for each observatory code.
• Yearly Summaries -- Yearly summaries of observations and discoveries in the MPC database.
• Database Subscription --
  • DB replication instructions

MPEC Watch

MPEC Watch provides various statistical metrics and plots derived from the Minor Planet Center's Minor Planet Electronic Circular service.
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Comet Statistics

Comet Statistics provides various statistics relating to comets in graph form. Graphs are available for data including discoveries (by year and comet type) and various orbital elements (by comet type and orbital element).
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MPC UG (MUG)

The MPC Users' Group (MUG) is composed of representatives from the major NEO surveys, the NEO follow-up community, the dynamics community, and the simulations community.

Read more on the MUG page...

Community Feedback for the MUG

The MUG welcomes feedback from the community about the Minor Planet Center. These comments will be read and considered at the next meeting.

Please note, this form is intended for non-technical input or broad concerns for input to and discussion by the MUG, and not for immediate review by the MPC. Technical and specific issues concerning the MPC should be entered via the MPC's JIRA ticketing system and will receive timely attention by the MPC.