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Space Science

A Comet To Watch 23

Posted by timothy from the do-not-use-on-glass dept.
Anonymous Coward writes "Ever since comet Hale-Bopp I have been waiting for a new, bright(as in visible to the naked eye), comet. It seems that my wait may have come to an end. Recently discovered comet C/2002 X5 can currently be seen by northern sky watchers through a telescope. It is predicted that it will brighten considerably (magnitude -3) in late January. Let's hope it lives up to expectations. Spaceweather.com has the whole story."
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A Comet To Watch More

A Comet To Watch

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  • Really bright... but really close to the sun (Score:3, Interesting)

    by ceoyoyo ( 59147 ) on Monday December 16, 2002 @09:28PM (#4903601)
    Magnitude -3 is pretty bright but not for an object closer to the magnitude -27 (or so) sun than Mercury. Mercury is already a challenge to observe because it can only be seen near the horizon just before sunrise or after sunset.

    I won't hold my breath for a Hale-Bopp competitor but it should be a good target for people with small telescopes or binoculars. Of course, comets are notoriously unpredictable....

    • Re:Really bright... but really close to the sun (Score:4, Funny)

      by Caractacus Potts ( 74726 ) on Tuesday December 17, 2002 @06:02AM (#4906001)
      I just have to nit-pick. I've seen Mercury during the middle of the day on at least three occasions. Of course, having the Moon blot out the Sun helped somewhat.
    • It gets worse, rumors are that with the latest orbits it will be southern hemisphere only from late January to early April. When it gets back to northern hemisphere visibility it'll be low near Orion (who sets just after sunset in April). It's orbit is awful close to the Sun. Seems like it might really start to dump gases and material on the way by and break up. If it does when it comes back to Northern Hemisphere it'll be a beaut. Only thing is it'll be a 1 shot phenomenon if that happens. If it doesn't break up and survives its close encounter of the hot kind then it'll be a binocular/telescope object in April...

  • Hale Bopp vs. others (Score:4, Interesting)

    by ObviousGuy ( 578567 ) <ObviousGuy@hotmail.com> on Monday December 16, 2002 @09:32PM (#4903622) Homepage Journal
    IANAAP, so I'm unqualified to offer unqualified blanket statements, but the likes of Hale Bopp will not be seen again during our lifetimes.

    That thing was not only visible with the naked eye, it was spectacular. The tail was clearly visible as a long spray of light, even without telescopes or binoculars.

    It was what a comet ought to be. Large against the sky, with streaming tail and glowing nucleus, and big enough that all these details can be made out with the naked eye.

    I saw Halley's comet last time it came through and I was very disappointed. It was too small, too far away, and too dim to make it out even with binoculars.

    If this next comet can rival Hale Bopp in its show, it will certainly be a treat.
  • There's no doubt that a magnitude of -3 is bright enough to see with the naked eye, but the problem we'll have is the close proximity to the sun that the comet will have during its peak intensity. That will likely negate the ability to view it with the naked eye. SOHO C2 and, maybe, C3 images would be the best bets to observe this comet as it passes by the sun.
  • we don't want anymore people dressing up in purple wearing black nike's again... that wouldn't be good....

  • Another article (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Liquor ( 189040 ) on Monday December 16, 2002 @11:58PM (#4904598) Homepage
    Sky and Telescope [skyandtelescope.com] also has an article [skyandtelescope.com] on the comet.

    This article also points out the unfortunate fact that when the comet is at it's brightest, it will be directly on the opposite side of the sun, and impossible to observe from the Earth.

  • Ok, here's your chance... (Score:3, Funny)

    by Hard_Code ( 49548 ) on Tuesday December 17, 2002 @10:02AM (#4906681)
    ...if you missed the mothership when it came around last time...

  • Egads... (Score:3, Funny)

    by Dannon ( 142147 ) on Tuesday December 17, 2002 @11:07AM (#4907079) Journal
    A sign of that horrid song-stuck-in-the-head phenomenon. [slashdot.org]

    I looked at the story above, and suddenly a tune popped into my head. Y'all are going to kill my karma for this....

    Remember that Hanson song that was all over the radio some years ago. Only, not as 'Mmmm-Bop'. I'm hearing 'Hale-Bopp'.

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