C/2018 V1 (Machholz–Fujikawa–Iwamoto)

C/2018 V1 (Machholz–Fujikawa–Iwamoto) is a comet discovered in 2018. It is classified as a non-periodic comet, meaning its orbital period is extremely long or it is on a hyperbolic trajectory and will not return to the inner solar system.

The comet was independently discovered by three observers: amateur astronomers Donald Machholz, Fujikawa, and Iwamoto. The convention in comet naming is to include the names of up to three independent discoverers.

The "C/" designation indicates that the object is a non-periodic comet. "2018" refers to the year of discovery. "V1" signifies that it was the first comet discovered in the "V" block of that year (the "V" block corresponds to the period of time between November 1 and November 15).

Observations of C/2018 V1 allowed astronomers to study the comet's composition and behavior as it approached and receded from the Sun. The comet's brightness and coma development were closely monitored by both professional and amateur astronomers. Studies of the comet's orbit helped refine our understanding of its origin and trajectory within the solar system.