Weekly Information about Bright Comets (2007 Aug. 4: South)

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Updated on August 5, 2007
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Best time and the azimuth, altitude (A,h) are at lat. 35 deg in the Southern Hemisphere.

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* C/2006 VZ13 ( LINEAR )

It brightened more rapidly than expected, and reached to 7.2 mag on July 14 (Maik Meyer). It will be fading gradually after this. Now it is 8.1 mag (Aug. 3, Juan Jose Gonzalez). It kept observable in good condition for a while in the Northern Hemisphere. However, it moves southwards very fast in August. It is only observable until mid August in the Northern Hemisphere. On the other hand, it became observable since mid July in the Southern Hemisphere.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4  13  7.55    5 28.0   0.940   1.022    62    8.0  18:46 (131, 37)  
Aug. 11  12 56.89   -2  8.3   1.132   1.015    56    8.4  18:51 (115, 35)  

* C/2006 XA1 ( LINEAR )

It became brighter than expected, and reached to 13.2 mag (May 12, Carlos Labordena). However, it is already not observable. In the Southen Hemisphere, it will be observable again at 15 mag in November. But in the Northern Hemisphere, it will never observable again.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   9 39.58    8 48.9   2.780   1.812    13   13.1  18:46 ( 98, -4)  
Aug. 11   9 55.45    6  4.8   2.798   1.822    12   13.1  18:51 ( 93, -6)  

* 29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 1

Although it had been unobservable for a long time, it appeared in the morning sky finally. Now it is bright as 14.9 mag by CCD (Aug. 2, Vitali Nevski).

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   5 54.98   29 55.3   6.641   5.934    42   13.9   5:25 (226,  7)  
Aug. 11   6  0.26   29 57.5   6.565   5.937    48   13.9   5:19 (223,  9)  

* C/2006 P1 ( McNaught )

Excellent great comet, few times in a lifetime, for southern people. It reached to -5.5 mag on Jan. 14 and 15, brighter than Venus, and visible even in daytime. Then it appeared in the evening sky in the Southern Hemisphere and many people enjoyed a fantastic view of a beautiful great comet, a enormous curving tail with so many striae over 50 degrees. It has already faded down to 12.6 mag (July 6, Walter Ruben Robledo). In the Southern Hemisphere, It keeps observable almost all night until the comet has gone. It will never be observable again in the Northern Hemisphere.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4  13  4.74  -65 32.2   3.405   3.640    95   14.1  18:46 ( 24, 52)  
Aug. 11  13 18.03  -64 20.8   3.559   3.726    91   14.3  18:51 ( 28, 51)  

* C/2007 E2 ( Lovejoy )

It passed near by the earth in mid April, and reached to 7.6 mag (Apr. 18, Juan Jose Gonzalez). Then it is fading rapidly. It has already faded down to 15.7 mag (July 28, Ken-ichi Kadota). It keeps observable in good condition in the Northern Hemisphere until the comet has gone.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4  13 30.08   56 32.8   2.486   2.235    63   14.2  18:46 (163, -5)  
Aug. 11  13 37.19   55 54.5   2.598   2.316    62   14.4  18:51 (160, -6)  

* C/2007 E1 ( Garradd )

It passed near by the earth in early April, and reached to 8.7 mag (Apr. 10, Werner hasubick). Then it faded down to 11.8 mag on May 26 (Seiichi Yoshida), and became too low to observe in the evening. Now it is not observable. Although it has been unobservable for a long time, now it is appearing in the morning sky finally.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   7  7.41   25 54.1   2.513   1.664    26   14.3   5:25 (240, -2)  
Aug. 11   7  5.09   26 14.5   2.480   1.728    33   14.6   5:19 (236,  2)  

* C/2006 K4 ( NEAT )

Now it is 15.4 mag (June 12, Ken-ichi Kadota). It will reach to 14.5 mag in summer. It moves in the southen sky, and it is observable in good condition in the Southern Hemisphere. However, it will never be observable again in the Northern Hemisphere.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4  18 32.71  -55 20.5   2.601   3.381   133   14.4  21:40 (  0, 70)  
Aug. 11  18 11.89  -56 18.0   2.665   3.359   125   14.4  20:52 (  0, 69)  

* P/2007 H1 ( McNaught )

Now it is bright and visible visually at 13.8 mag (July 21, Bob King). It will be observable in very good condition at 14 mag until autumn. However, it was not discovered at the previous apparition in 1999. So it may be bright temporarily in outburst.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   0 17.41   -4  8.7   1.508   2.283   128   14.5   3:29 (180, 59)  
Aug. 11   0 19.96   -4 53.5   1.450   2.281   134   14.4   3:04 (180, 60)  

* C/2006 Q1 ( McNaught )

It will reach to 11 mag in 2008 spring. It will keep bright for a long time, however, it keeps moving in the southern sky for a while after this. In the Southern Hemisphere, now it is low temporarily. But it will be high after this, then it keeps observable in good condition until 2008 summer. In the Northern Hemisphere, it will appear at 13 mag in November in a short time, but very low and hard to observe. However, it will be visible visually at 11 mag in the evening sky from March to June in 2008. Then it becomes unobservable again. But it will appear in the morning sky again at 13 mag at the end of 2008, then it keeps bright and observable for a while.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   7 19.39  -27 37.5   4.879   4.307    50   14.6   5:25 (287, 26)  
Aug. 11   7 28.83  -28 11.2   4.815   4.258    51   14.5   5:19 (286, 29)  

* C/2005 L3 ( McNaught )

Now it is bright and visible visually at 13.2 mag (July 14, Juan Jose Gonzalez). It will be observable at 14 mag at high location from spring to summer both in 2007 and 2008.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4  17  8.84   -1 31.6   5.112   5.720   122   14.7  20:18 (180, 57)  
Aug. 11  17  3.54   -1 22.5   5.207   5.710   114   14.7  19:45 (180, 56)  

* C/2007 F1 ( LONEOS )

It will approach down to 0.4 A.U. to the sun on Oct. 28, and it is expected to reach to 6 mag. However, it was much fainter than expected recently, 17.5 mag on June 17 (Michael Jager) and 18.1 mag on July 25 (Luca Buzzi). The condition in the Northern Hemisphere is very hard. It locates extremely low, slightly over the horizon in the morning sky, from late September to mid October, then it will never be observable again. In the Southern Hemisphere, it will appear in the evening sky in early November, then it keeps observable while fading gradually, although it will not locate very high. It is expected to appear at 7 mag, but it can be much fainter actually.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4  10 28.86   28 25.1   2.697   1.821    24   15.3  18:46 (120, -6)  
Aug. 11  10 35.64   28 19.8   2.611   1.708    21   14.9  18:51 (117,-11)  

* C/2006 OF2 ( Broughton )

It will reach to 10.5 mag and will be observable in good condition in 2008 autumn. Now it is 15.0 mag (July 15, Michael Jager), brightening as expected. It keeps observable in good condition for a long time while the comet is getting brighter slowly.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4  21 52.50   -8 42.2   3.829   4.810   163   15.0   1:05 (180, 64)  
Aug. 11  21 48.10   -8 36.5   3.752   4.755   170   14.9   0:33 (180, 64)  

* 17P/Holmes

Now it is bright as 14.5 mag (July 16, Michael Jager). It will keep bright as 14-15 mag and observable in good condition for a long time until autumn.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   3  3.89   34 40.9   2.139   2.174    78   15.0   5:25 (191, 19)  
Aug. 11   3 14.75   36 23.4   2.086   2.192    82   15.0   5:19 (188, 18)  

* 189P/2007 N2 ( NEAT )

It passed very close to the earth in July and reach to 15.5 mag (July 16, Michael Jager). But it will fade out rapidly after August, and will be fainter than 18 mag in September.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4  18  1.23   17 48.1   0.255   1.179   124   15.7  21:12 (180, 37)  
Aug. 11  18 20.44   23 42.7   0.291   1.190   120   16.1  21:03 (180, 31)  

* C/2006 S5 ( Hill )

Appearing in the morning sky after long time blank since last winter. No observations have been reported recently, but it must be already bright as 16 mag. It will reach to 14 mag in next winter, and will be observable in good condition. It is expected to be visible visually. It keeps observable in good condition for a long time until 2008 spring.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   5 19.79   28 10.2   3.488   2.944    50   15.9   5:25 (221, 13)  
Aug. 11   5 32.63   28 12.0   3.389   2.913    54   15.8   5:19 (219, 14)  

* C/2003 WT42 ( LINEAR )

It has been visible at 13.5 mag for a long time since 2005 autumn until 2006 spring. However, it has already faded down to 16.7 mag (June 23, Ken-ichi Kadota). Fine tail is visible on CCD images. It is getting lower gradually, and will be too low to observe in September.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4  12 52.37   13 13.7   6.787   6.297    57   15.8  18:46 (134, 28)  
Aug. 11  12 55.82   12 23.2   6.898   6.325    52   15.9  18:51 (127, 24)  

* C/2006 L2 ( McNaught )

Now it is 16.5 mag (Apr. 9, Ken-ichi Kadota). No observations have been reported since June. However, the fading is slow. The comet will be fainter than 18 mag in 2008. In the Northern Hemisphere, it keeps observable until that time.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   5 49.94   64 32.1   4.004   3.544    56   16.0   5:25 (202,-18)  
Aug. 11   5 54.96   64 37.0   3.999   3.603    60   16.1   5:19 (200,-17)  

* 2P/Encke

It had been observed while brightening rapidly until the perihelion passage on Apr. 19, although it located extremely low in the evening sky. It reached to 6.7 mag on Apr. 17 (Juan Jose Gonzalez). In the Southern Hemisphere, it appeared in the morning sky at 7.8 mag in early May (May 9, Alexandre Amorim). Then it is fading rapidly. It has already faded down to 17.0 mag (Aug. 3, S. G. McAndrew).

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4  19 56.93  -33 55.9   0.895   1.878   159   16.0  23:04 (180, 89)  
Aug. 11  19 42.28  -33  1.5   1.004   1.956   151   16.5  22:23 (180, 88)  

* 188P/2007 J7 ( LINEAR-Mueller )

First return of a new periodic comet discovered in 1998 at 14 mag. It was recovered at 18 mag in May and June. It is a bit fainter than this ephemeris, but almost as bright as predicted. It will reach to 16 mag until autumn.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   0 28.77    0 16.3   2.007   2.713   124   16.2   3:41 (180, 55)  
Aug. 11   0 29.35    0 43.3   1.923   2.697   130   16.1   3:14 (180, 54)  

* C/2006 U6 ( Spacewatch )

Appearing in the moring sky. No observations have been reported since January. But it must have already brightened up to 16.5 mag. It will reach to 13.5 mag in the southern sky in 2008 spring and summer. In the Southern Hemisphere, it keeps observable for a long time after this. However, it is only observable until autumn in the Northern Hemisphere, when the comet brightens up to 15 mag. Then it will be observable again at the end of 2008, when the comet will already fade down to 15 mag.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   1 36.05  -15 14.2   3.527   4.031   112   16.3   4:48 (180, 70)  
Aug. 11   1 36.93  -17  9.2   3.388   3.978   118   16.1   4:21 (180, 72)  

* C/2007 G1 ( LINEAR )

Now it is 16.6 mag (July 24, Ken-ichi Kadota). It will reach to 12 mag in 2008 summer. In the Northern Hemisphere, it keeps observable almost all time until that while the comet is brightening gradually. However, it goes to the southern sky and will never be observable again in the Northern Hemisphere after that.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4  16 40.79   28 20.8   4.955   5.285   103   16.2  19:50 (180, 27)  
Aug. 11  16 37.66   26 54.5   4.973   5.232    99   16.2  19:19 (180, 28)  

* 50P/Arend

Now it is 17.2 mag (June 18, Tony Farkas). It will reach to 15 mag and will be observable in good condition in autumn. Then it keeps observable until it becomes fainter than 18 mag in 2008 spring. However, it was reported as 18 mag or fainter in July, much fainter than this ephemeris.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   2  1.89   16 50.8   1.699   2.082    96   16.5   5:13 (180, 38)  
Aug. 11   2 10.25   18 58.5   1.609   2.059   101   16.4   4:54 (180, 36)  

* 44P/Reinmuth 2

Now it is 16.8 mag (June 18, E. Guido, G. Sostero). It will be observable at 16.5 mag in summer and autumn in 2007, and observable at 17 mag in summer and autumn in 2008.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4  17 18.37  -24 19.0   1.802   2.568   129   16.4  20:28 (180, 79)  
Aug. 11  17 18.39  -24  1.0   1.847   2.541   122   16.4  20:00 (180, 79)  

* 128P/Shoemaker-Holt 1

Appearing in the moring sky. No observations have been reported since January. But it must have already brightened up to 16.5 mag. It tends to be brightest after the perihelion passage. It will be observable in good condition at 16 mag until winter.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   5 53.49   21  4.4   3.749   3.082    42   16.4   5:25 (232, 13)  
Aug. 11   6  3.98   20 58.0   3.687   3.086    46   16.4   5:19 (230, 15)  

* C/2007 M3 ( LINEAR )

Now it is 16.4 mag (July 24, Ken-ichi Kadota). It is observable at 16-17 mag in 2007 summer. It will be observable brighter than 18 mag also in 2008, from spring to summer.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4  17 59.43   -2 42.3   2.692   3.481   134   16.6  21:08 (180, 58)  
Aug. 11  17 45.26   -3 43.3   2.786   3.476   125   16.6  20:26 (180, 59)  

* C/2006 M4 ( SWAN )

It reached up to 4 mag in 2006 autumn. But it had faded down to 10.5 mag on Jan. 11 (Carlos Labordena). It had been unobservable for a long time since that, but now it is appearing at dawn again. Now it is 16.8 mag (May 27, Ken-ichi Kadota), fading rather rapidly. After this, it keeps observable until it becomes fainter than 18 mag in autumn.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4  22 23.05  -26 11.2   3.427   4.383   157   16.6   1:36 (180, 81)  
Aug. 11  22 14.85  -27 31.5   3.479   4.457   162   16.8   1:00 (180, 82)  

* C/2005 S4 ( McNaught )

Now it is 17.1 mag (June 12, Ken-ichi Kadota). It will be observable at 16.5-17 mag in good condition in summer.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4  19 57.01   17 24.1   5.014   5.851   142   16.7  23:05 (180, 38)  
Aug. 11  19 49.76   17 35.1   5.040   5.852   139   16.7  22:30 (180, 37)  

* C/2007 O1 ( LINEAR )

It was observed at 16 mag in July. It will be fading gradually after this, and will be fainter than 18 mag in October.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4  19  1.43  -20 43.4   1.994   2.935   153   16.7  22:10 (180, 76)  
Aug. 11  19  0.62  -21 55.3   2.054   2.951   146   16.8  21:42 (180, 77)  

* 108P/Ciffreo

Appearing in the morning sky, and observed at 16.7 mag as bright as expected (July 24, E. Guido, G. Sostero). It will be getting higher after this. But it will be fading gradually and becomes fainter than 18 mag in October.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   5 40.35   24 35.0   2.276   1.727    45   16.9   5:25 (227, 13)  
Aug. 11   6  0.16   25 19.9   2.243   1.735    47   16.9   5:19 (226, 13)  

* C/2006 W3 ( Christensen )

It is expected to reach to 11 mag in 2009 summer. Because it moves in the northern sky, it keeps observable until it becomes brightest in the Northern Hemipshere.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   6 23.20   49 53.0   7.605   6.916    44   17.0   5:25 (216,-11)  
Aug. 11   6 26.49   50 21.2   7.484   6.868    49   16.9   5:19 (213, -9)  

* C/2006 M1 ( LINEAR )

Now it is 17.5 mag (July 16, Michael Jager). It is outside of Jupiter's orbit. So it keeps 17 mag for a long time until 2007 summer. It keeps locating high and observable in good condition for a long time after this because it moves in the northern sky.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   2 59.79   36 43.8   3.941   3.872    78   17.1   5:25 (190, 17)  
Aug. 11   3  4.22   36 31.1   3.866   3.896    84   17.1   5:19 (186, 18)  

* 93P/Lovas 1

Now it is 16.6 mag (July 16, Vitali Nevski). It will brighten rapidly after this. It is observable at 13.5 mag in good condition from autumn to winter.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   0 50.50    8 49.9   1.523   2.169   116   17.5   4:02 (180, 46)  
Aug. 11   0 55.09   10 19.3   1.421   2.130   121   17.1   3:39 (180, 45)  

* P/2007 N1 ( McNaught )

New periodic comet. It will reach to 16 mag in autumn, and will be observable in good condition.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   2 21.41    2 55.1   1.668   2.056    96   17.2   5:25 (183, 52)  
Aug. 11   2 31.37    3 11.7   1.595   2.048   101   17.1   5:15 (180, 52)  

* P/2006 F1 ( Kowalski )

Now it is 18.1 mag (Apr. 14, Maciej Reszelski). It is observable at 17.5-18 mag until autumn. It was discovered at 18 mag in 2006. It is a distant periodic comet, and it keeps observable at 18 mag for 4 years until 2009.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4  18 44.62  -14 49.9   3.260   4.161   148   17.4  21:53 (180, 70)  
Aug. 11  18 41.90  -15 24.0   3.315   4.158   141   17.4  21:23 (180, 70)  

* 117P/Helin-Roman-Alu 1

It reached to 13.5 mag and became visible visually in 2005 and 2006. Now it has gone far away. But it is observable at 17.5 mag until November.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   2 25.92    8 38.4   3.793   3.996    94   17.6   5:25 (184, 46)  
Aug. 11   2 28.10    8 46.7   3.705   4.012   100   17.6   5:12 (180, 46)  

* 8P/Tuttle

It will reach to 6 mag in January, and will be observable in good condition. Now it is 18.3 mag (Aug. 2, Vitali Nevski). In the Northern Hemipshere, it keeps observable until early February, when it fades down to 7.5 mag. In the Southern Hemipshere, it is not observable until late December. But after that, it keeps observable until it fades out.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   1 14.85   71  1.6   2.474   2.527    81   18.0   4:27 (180,-16)  
Aug. 11   1 28.04   73 15.8   2.369   2.458    82   17.7   4:12 (180,-18)  

* C/2006 K3 ( McNaught )

Now it is 16.5 mag (July 25, Katsumi Yoshimoto). Before the perihelion passage, it kept 16.5-17 mag and hardly brightened. After the perihelion passage, it seems hardly to be fading.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   4 12.68   33 30.3   3.229   2.937    64   17.7   5:25 (206, 16)  
Aug. 11   4 13.96   35 41.6   3.157   2.976    70   17.7   5:19 (201, 16)  

* 136P/Mueller 3

Now it is 18.8 mag (July 26, Filip Fratev). It will reach to 17.5 mag until autumn.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   0  7.58   -5 33.6   2.222   2.991   131   17.9   3:20 (180, 61)  
Aug. 11   0  7.62   -6  4.8   2.154   2.986   138   17.8   2:52 (180, 61)  

* P/2004 F3 ( NEAT )

It was observed bright as 14-15 mag in 2004 and 2005. Now it is close to the aphelion, but it will be observable at 17.5 mag in good condition in 2007 autumn.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Aug.  4   3 17.75    6 57.8   4.755   4.729    82   17.9   5:25 (203, 45)  
Aug. 11   3 20.37    7  0.4   4.660   4.740    88   17.9   5:19 (196, 47)  

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