Comet Unexpectedly Brightens a Millionfold

swordgeek writes "Comet 17P/Holmes, a relatively obscure and (until a few days ago) dim object, has suddenly flared to be literally a million times brighter, going from magnitude 18 to 2.8. It is just outside of the constellation Perseus, which puts it high in the sky and ideal for viewing at this time of year. The comet still appears starlike even in binoculars but should grow to several arcminutes across over the next few nights. The comet is now readily visible to the naked eye. This is a completely unexpected once-in-a-lifetime event, so get out your finest optics (even if it's just your eyes) and go comet watching!"

we need a comet, a big one

[circletimessquare (444983)]

i don't think we've seen a really big bright comet in how long? hasn't it been decades, or centuries even? anywhere in the world?

i mean a really big bright one that eats the whole sky

we need a big bright comet because history teaches us that warring factions oftentimes stop their fighting and lay down their arms when shocked at the sight

so we need a big bright comet pronto

Re:

[jcicora (949398)]

Does Halley's comet not count??

Re:we need a comet, a big one

[MBGMorden (803437)]

Forget Halley's. It was a dissappointment last time anyways. Hale-Bopp and Hyakutake were even more recent (within the last 11 years) and were spectacular.

Re:

[GodfatherofSoul (174979)]

Not with our president. Bush would just point to the heavens and say, "See? God hates terrorism, too!"

Re:we need a comet, a big one

[laejoh (648921)]

Well yeah, we're talking about a comet that brightens, not a president!

Comet, comet, go away, don't come back other day

[SleptThroughClass (1127287)]

If the comet reaches Earth it is a WMD.

oblig starship troopers

[Joe the Lesser (533425)]

Johnny Rico: I'm from Buenos Aires, and I say kill 'em all!

Re:we need a comet, a big one

[Sperbels (1008585)]

[quote]i mean a really big bright one that eats the whole sky[/quote] Hyukatake had a tail that stretched across half the sky at its best. You guys don't know this because you live under a gigantic light bubble.

Re:we need a comet, a big one

[NormalVisual (565491)]

Bingo. There are a *lot* of people out there that don't know what a night sky really looks like. It's kind of saddening to read reports of people calling in during widespread power failures to report "a strange silvery band in the sky", when it's just that they've never seen the Milky Way before because of all the light pollution.

What the night sky *really* looks like

[patio11 (857072)]

Nothing. Only when you get outside of civilization are you afflicted with the light pollution from stars hundreds of light years away. Don't worry, this pollution, while unsettling if you weren't expecting it, has no permanent ill effects and clears up again after you return to civilization.

Perhaps I'll go look.

[camperdave (969942)]

Perhaps I'll go look. Despite all the hype, Halley was a bust. Kohoutek may have been the comet of the century, but that was last century. I hope this one doesn't disappoint.

Re:

[hypnagogue (700024)]

Despite all the hype, Halley was a bust.

Baloney. It was beautiful in March and April 1986, by far the best comet views in my lifetime, with a bright detailed tail 8 degrees long. Hyukatake and Hale-Bopp were good, but not that good.

Let me guess, you went out to see Halley in October or November of 1985, before perihelion, long before peak, when it was in the night sky. Sorry, the views were in the spring, in the morning sky. Just like they were telling folks on the news; no one listened.

Comet McNaught 2006 p1

[iamlucky13 (795185)]

This comet isn't exactly one to get hyped about. It's not that bright. Magnitude 3 is about as bright as the Little Dipper. You won't see it from the city and you have to know where to look to identify it from better conditions.

Of course, naked eye comets always get a brief mention in the news, even when dim, but this one caught attention because of the dramatic increase in brightness. It's all the more surprising when you consider that this is a short period comet in a relatively circular orbit. It make

Why?

[squoozer (730327)]

Does anyone have any idea why this comet has suddenly got so much brighter? Presumably it is flying past a star but surely it would do this on a fairly regular basis.

Re:Why?

[jamie (78724)]

Well, the only star it's flying near is the big yellow one you see in the daytime. I haven't seen anything about the reason it got brighter, but my guess would be it has an icy core that has been gradually heating internally as it orbited closer to the sun, until suddenly it burst out as steam. If that's the case, maybe it'll get brighter as it gets closer and warmer... or maybe the lid's been taken off the pot and after a day of spewing a ton of stored-up H2O now it'll settle down and get dimmer.

(Like a balloon when something bad happens!)

Re:

[by Anonymous Coward]

Nope. This comet made its closest approach to the sun back in May. It's now moving away from the sun. It also follows a relatively circular orbit compared to most bright comets, so significant changes in brightness are unexpected.

However, there may have been an unusually large pocket of vapor that form some reason burst out at this point (out-gassing), or it might have been hit by a smaller object.

Re:

[pedestrian crossing (802349)]

Does anyone have any idea why this comet has suddenly got so much brighter? Presumably it is flying past a star but surely it would do this on a fairly regular basis.

Comets appear bright because they start to evaporate as they approach the sun, and the sun illuminates the evaporating gas and dust.

The best guess as to why this one has suddenly brightened so much is that it has either broken apart or experienced a sudden outgassing for some other reason.

BTW, the comets we see are gravitationally bound to o

Re:

[ObiWanStevobi (1030352)]

Obviously, It's coming right for us!

Thermal pulse

[mdsolar (1045926)]

This comet orbits between 2.2 and 5.2 AU and it's last closest approach to the Sun was in May, 2007: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/17P/Holmes [wikipedia.org]. An AU is the average distance between the Sun and the Earth.

Comet crusts, the dark stuff that is left over after the ice sublimates, are thought to conduct heat slowly. One theory on why we see outbursts as comets move away from the Sun, as this one is doing, is that the warming pulse from the closest approach takes time to sink down to a reservior of carbon monoxide gas which then sublimate internally and blows off fairly large chunks of the comet. Another theory is that the same thermal pulse reaches a reservior of amorphous water ice, which is more common in space than crystalline ice and thus might be present in comets since their formation. When amorphous ice is warmed, it will become crystalline and release energy because the ordered state of crystaline ice is a lower energy state. This can lead to a chain reaction of further crystallization and energy release that could lead to enough warming to cause sublimation in the interior and then do the same kind of thing as in the carbon monoxide scenario.
--
Get your power from the Sun for what you already pay now: http://mdsolar.blogspot.com/2007/01/slashdot-users-selling-solar.html [blogspot.com]

Re:

[wximagery95 (993253)]

Does anyone have any idea why this comet has suddenly got so much brighter?

Global warming.

Earth to comet: Y R U so late?

[140Mandak262Jamuna (970587)]

I remember a group of people waiting for you. Some 32 people in some large farm house or something in California. All wearing some kind of black clothing and Nike shoes. They took your promise to come in 1999 or so and committed suicide but you are coming so late. OK atleast the rest of the believers can now die and meet you.

Re:Earth to comet: Y R U so late?

[jollyreaper (513215)]

I remember a group of people waiting for you. Some 32 people in some large farm house or something in California. All wearing some kind of black clothing and Nike shoes. They took your promise to come in 1999 or so and committed suicide but you are coming so late. OK atleast the rest of the believers can now die and meet you.

I can't take credit for the lyrics but they're still funny!

Song Lyrics:
Magic Comet Ride

(Parody of Magic Carpet Ride by Steppenwolf)

I like to dream
Yes, yes
About flying around in a space machine
When a big blue ball appears in the night
Our leader says that the time is right
Hale Bopp draws near
Clean the house and pack that gear

Well, UFO is right behind
Why don't you come with me, boys and girls
On a magic comet ride
Well, UFO's got a extra seat
Why don't you take a trek with me?
Beam us up, we'll visit ET

Grab a ride, girl
Say good bye, world
Let Hale Bopp take you away

Last night I packed a travel sack
And said goodbye on video tape
Before the ship could come for me
Some witch doctor had to take my nuts away
I donned a gown
Brand new shoes from Niketown

Well, you won't know if you stay behind
Why don't you come with me, cyber geek
On a magic comet ride
We'll follow Doe and you will see
Why don't you go to sleep with me?
This plastic bag will set you free

Say goodbye, world
Log your last URL
Let the ship take you away

Well, UFO is right behind
Why don't you come with me, boys and girls
On a magic comet ride
Well, UFO's got an extra seat
Why don't you take a trek with me?
Beam us up, we'll visit ET (Marcus Tee)

Odd behavior

[Muad'Dave (255648)]

According to SpaceWeather.com [spaceweather.com], not only did the comet brighten unexpectedly, it "... has no tail, [and] a remarkable golden color ...". Unless the geometry of the sun-earth-comet trio is such that the tail is pointing directly away from the earth, you'd think there'd be a massive tail given the million-fold increase in brightness.

Re:Odd behavior

[aadvancedGIR (959466)]

Just a few facts to ruin the joke.
-If a comet is heading directly for us, don't worry. If it is heading where we will be by the time it gets there, on the other hand...
-The comet tail is almost not related to its trajectory, but mostly to the direction of the solar wind hitting it, you can approximately draw a line Sun->comet->tail.

So odds are that if we ever have to collide with a comet, we will most likely be idealy placed to see its tail just before the collision.

WARNING

[LiquidCoooled (634315)]

The comet is now readily visible to the naked eye.

WARNING
Do not look into the comet with your remaining eye.

Re:WARNING

[R2.0 (532027)]

A coworker bought a balisong (butterfly knife) as a youth, and being a methodical chap, bought "The Balisong Book", or somesuch.

The instructions started out with "First, take off the blade of the knife prior to practicing, or you will cut yourself". Being young and cocky, he ignored it and started playing with it. After cutting his hand rather badly, he decided to consult the book again.

The next line read "Now that you have bandaged your hand, tape off the knife edge like the previous instructions said".

It's The COMET EMPIRE!!!

[saudadelinux (574392)]

Where's the Argo/Yamato? Tell 'em to power up the Wave Motion Gun to deal with this intergalatic menace!

Er, where?

[sm62704 (957197)]

...high in the sky and ideal for viewing at this time of year.

On what part of the planet? Northern hemosphere or southern? The Americas or Asia? What time of night (or day)?

In 1974, the American media were excitedly predicting a very bright comet named Kahoutek, and then when it appeared wrote how dissapointing the show was, that it wasn't even visible.

I was in Thailand that year, Kahoutek drowned out all the stars in half the sky there.

Some of you folks need to learn that the internet is a global phenomena and not restricted to your own country. Is this thing visible in my country (US)? What part of the sky, and what time? If I can see it, people in Australia can't.

-mcgrew

Unexpected Sudden Brightening?

[clickety6 (141178)]

You think that's unexpected?

Wait until it suddenly changes direction!

Now thatwill be unexpected!

Re:Unexpected Sudden Brightening?

[Alsee (515537)]

You think that's unexpected?
Wait until it suddenly changes direction!

Oh yeah? You think that's unexpected?

Wait until it starts an Inquisition!

Now that will be unexpected!

-

I got a photo of it through my telescope

[yeremein (678037)]

here [flickr.com]. There was no visible tail, just a fuzzy circle.

Wow! A once in a lifetime event!

[east coast (590680)]

So that's why it's going to be cloudy over my area for the foreseeable future?

Never fails.

Great scale

[sacrilicious (316896)]

literally a million times brighter, going from magnitude 18 to 2.8.

Dr Evil: ... and so we will demand... one million dollars! (*laughs evilly*)
Henchman: Um, well, it turns out that a million dollars isn't so much money any more.
Dr Evil: Hmm. In that case... we will demand... fifty cents!!!

It's Obvious

[trongey (21550)]

The comet hasn't brightened. What you're seeing is the afterglow from the nuclear explosion that Bruce Willis set off yesterday.

Our new Overlords

[kmahan (80459)]

Obviously a ship starting its deceleration burn.

A "Millionfold" is not the same as a Million times

[N0GNU (238662)]

The /. title "Comet Unexpectedly Brightens a Millionfold" demonstrates a common mistake.

  Each "fold" means a doubling, or 2 to the n'th power. For example, three-fold is 8-times. Take a piece of paper and fold it three times- unfold it and count the number of rectangles outlined by the creases. This is where the expression actually came from...

  People incorrectly use the "fold" term because they think it sounds more intelligent, but they demonstrate their ignorance by misusing it.

  A brighting of 2 to the millionth power would be so massive that we and our entire solar system would be almost instantly vaporized and blown away by the photons striking us.

ron

Re:A "Millionfold" is not the same as a Million ti

[swordgeek (112599)]

Just to be clear on something, I never used the word millionfold in my submission. That was kdawson editing my post for his own glory.

Incidentally, the term has been used both ways, and has etymologically distinct roots, so millionfold meaning 'a million times' is valid.
I can't link directly to it, at the sixth entry (-fold) at Miriam Webster's [m-w.com].

Nonetheless, it wasn't my word. Neither was the claim that the comet is 'starlike in binoculars.'

kdawson, quit putting words in my mouth!

[swordgeek (112599)]

I'm slightly appalled.
I write up what I consider to be an interesting story for /. readers, check my grammar and links, and then click submit. Lo and behold, it gets accepted. Cool!

Then I read what I supposedly wrote, and find that words have been put in my mouth. Specifically:

"The comet still appears starlike even in binoculars but should grow to several arcminutes across over the next few nights. "

I did NOT write that. I didn't suggest it. The comet does NOT appear starlike in binoculars at all--it's quite a clear extended disk. ONE person quoted in Sky & Telescope believes that it will expand to several arcminutes in size, but that's strictly conjecture.

Furthermore, I didn't use the word "millionfold" in my subject line. That was kdawson again. /. editors: If you're going to actually edit submissions (and why start now, after ignoring fundamental grammatical errors and duplicate stories for a decade?) then get it right!

Doesn't matter

[pedestrian crossing (802349)]

What about in the UK? Where would I need to look to see this thing? I know /. is American centered but the world is a pretty big place and those of us not in that continent might like to know where we can/can't see things.

It doesn't matter, it will be in the same place in the sky no matter where on Earth you are.

Re:Doesn't matter

[jimstapleton (999106)]

Actually, Latitude+time-of-year will make a difference.

But given that the UK and US are on the same hemisphere, that shouldn't be a problem, and if it is... Train + Rome...

Re:Doesn't matter

[bcattwoo (737354)]

Yes, but the sky will be in a different place above you depending on latitude.

I am at 35.778889 N and the sky is up. Can you post your latitude and sky direction for comparison?

Re:UK?

[by Anonymous Coward]

When the clouds clear up, and the rain stops.

Oh, right, UK.

Never.

Re:UK?

[Mushdot (943219)]

Looking at the last link in the summary I think we ought to be able to see it

Look for Cassiopeia ( a big and fairly obvious W or M in the sky) and track your eyes downward from it. It's going to be just down to the left of the bright star Mirfak in Perseus.

I wonder what the reason for the brightening is? Maybe it hit Voyager.

Re:

[Rei (128717)]

To expand on this, in the night sky, Perseus looks like a rough square with four curvy lines jutting out of it, and with the northward side of the square "bent" out by a bright star. That star is Mirfak. Perseus isn't as obvious as Cassiopeia, or even Andromeda (just south of Cassiopeia), so if you're in a city and are unfamiliar with the night sky, you might have trouble locating it (just a couple miles out of town should be enough to get a clear enough view). To help orient yourself, the "feet" of Pers

Re:UK?

[gomiam (587421)]

Fortunately for you, Earth has this weird movement called rotation that guarantees the anybody at the same latitude will be able to watch the same phenomenon as long as it is independent of Earth movement and lasts at least a rotation ;-)

This is not an eclipse, so you should be able to watch it from the UK, clouds permitting. If you are worried about latitude, you can check the low-cost flights to Spain and come to watch it from here over the weekend. I think you can see Perseus from the UK, anyway.

Re:

[famebait (450028)]

Well, umm, the UK and the US are not that different in latitude, and as for the east-west thing, last I checked the earth makes a complete revoluion every day.

Re:UK?

[mrjb (547783)]

What about in the UK? Where would I need to look to see this thing?
Regardless of country - You would need to look up.

Re:

[jollyreaper (513215)]

If that dumbas folk singer is to be believed, he'll be found on a bus. Just like one of us.

Depends on the singer you're listening to. Mine says he was born in a cheap hotel at the end of Route 66, he lived a dark and twisted life and came right back just to do it again.

Re:Magnitude scale incorrect on Wikipedia?

[Myrano (952282)]

Magnitude is a log scale, with brighter objects having lower magnitudes. Like so much in astronomy, the reason is historical: when the first guy (Greek, probably) decided to categorize stars by brightness he said the brightest stars should be first magnitude, the next brightest second, and so on. Because of the nature of the human eye, the scale is logarithmic. Objects brighter than what this guy considered first magnitude thus have a magnitude of less than one, or even less than zero.

The numbers are funny (rather than -1, 0, 1, 2) because they're giving you sample objects so you can get an idea about the range of the scale.

Hope that helped!

Re:

[trongey (21550)]

You realize, of course, that being able to make a connection to a Sci-Fi book that was just published last year means your chances of ever getting a date are pretty much non-existent.