A Bright Comet Is Coming
Posted on: Wednesday, 10 January 2007, 15:15 CST
If you watch the morning or evening sky these days and have a clear view of the horizon, you will be able to spot a bright object with a prominent tail.
Instructions for viewing the comet in the morning from Spaceweather.com:
At dawn, go outside and face east
Using binoculars, scan the horizon
The comet is located just south of due east
Instructions for viewing the comet in the evening from Spaceweather.com:
At sunset, go outside and face west
Using binoculars, scan the horizon
The comet is located low and to the right of Venus
A clear view of the horizon is essential
That object is comet C/2006 P1 (Comet McNaught). It was discovered on August 7th, 2006 by the hugely successful comet discoverer Rob McNaught.
At time of discovery, the comet was a very faint object, but the predicted perihelion distance (closest distance to the sun) of just 0.17 astronomical units (the average distance between the Earth and sun, about 150 million kilometers) indicated that the object has the potential to become very bright indeed.
Nobody really knows just what this comet will look like at its closest point to the sun and that is where SOHO comes in! The LASCO instrument aboard SOHO has the ability to watch comets as they get extremely close to the sun.
Fortunately for us, C/2006 P1 is going to pass right through the LASCO C3 field of view in less than a weeks' time! As soon as SOHO's cameras capture the comet, we will post images and further information to the SOHO website. In the meantime, you may enjoy looking at some photographs and checking out the links below for further information.
The image to the left shows the expected track of the comet through SOHO's coronagraph LASCO C3. The comet will appear in the field of view of C3 at around 10:00 UT (05:00 EDT) on January 12th (a few hours before perihelion) in the upper-left of the images and travel almost vertically down, exiting C3's field of view in the lower left at roughly 03:00 UT on January 16th.
Recent estimates of the comet's maximal brightness have ranged widely from magnitude +2.1 (about as bright as Polaris, the North Star) to a super-bright -8.8 (about 40 times brighter than Venus)! The lower the magnitude number, the brighter the object. The brightest stars in the sky are categorized as zero or first magnitude. Negative magnitudes are reserved for the most brilliant objects: the brightest star is Sirius (-1.4); the full Moon is -12.7; the Sun is -26.7.
Current estimates put comet McNaught at magnitude 0 to -1, and it is still brightening. It could be -2 or -3 by the time it reaches LASCO's field of view. This means it will be brighter than comet NEAT or comet 96P/Machholz. In other words, this could be the brightest and most spectacular comet that SOHO has ever seen!
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On the Net:
Source: NASA/Roger Johansen image
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User Comments (113)
| 13. |
Posted by Jay on 01/10/2007, 16:13 Dave..you made a poo like that? Are you sure you weren't looking at Uranus? |
| 12. |
Posted by Hitachi on 01/10/2007, 16:13 Its a sign from Nintendo: A new Mario game is coming! |
| 11. |
Posted by howard hofelich on 01/10/2007, 16:12 Maybe this comet is a harbinger of doom...a great pestilence like SARS or Bird Flu...or a nuclear detonation in Iran. Remember ..survival of the fittest..Natures first commandment... |
| 10. |
Posted by Rico Pelado on 01/10/2007, 16:12 No, not a sign from Allah --- it is Allah, on his way around the sun and then back out into the depths of space...unless, something else happens. |
| 9. |
Posted by Jonathan on 01/10/2007, 16:09 This is a very exciting time! |
| 8. |
Posted by Hiram on 01/10/2007, 16:09 The End is NEAR By the Nine Tongues, Mahlegeth Slumbers. By the Nine Tongues, Mahlegeth Stirs. By the Nine Tongues, Mahlegeth Rises. By the Nine Tongues, HE will devouer us all. |
| 7. |
Posted by Bill on 01/10/2007, 16:04 That clown Dave should hitch a ride on a comet. I'll be looking tonight. Comets are rare and I look forward to watching it. |
| 6. |
Posted by Mohammed on 01/10/2007, 16:03 This is surely a sign from Allah that the infidels will soon be vanquished Allah Akbar |
| 5. |
Posted by Lourdess on 01/10/2007, 16:03 Oh boy, oh boy, que mangincintifico! |
| 4. |
Posted by Tom on 01/10/2007, 15:56 I like cheese |
| 3. |
Posted by Drew on 01/10/2007, 15:53 i will now breath a sigh of relief: *sigh* |
| 2. |
Posted by DAVE on 01/10/2007, 15:51 i onced made a poo that looked like a comet. it was neato. |
| 1. |
Posted by Superman on 01/10/2007, 15:51 If it gets to close....I will respond. |
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