"Shortened" mpcorb.dat

Bill J Gray Apr 19, 2003

Hi Ben,

Best way to do this that I can see would be to use, not
mpcorb.dat, but skymap.dat. This file is on the same MPC
ftp sites (listed at http://www.projectpluto.com/mpcorb.dat ),
but contains only numbered asteroids. There are now about
50 000 of these. Matches up nicely with the constraint for
which you're looking. Download it and rename it to mpcorb.dat,
and you ought to be in business.

(And I probably should extend the ability to "filter" asteroids,
described at

http://www.projectpluto.com/update7.htm#asteroid_filtering

to include the ability to filter on number as well as on
orbital elements. That is, one could say

ASTFILTER=n < 50000

to get the situation Ben wants.)

-- Bill