Weekly Information about Bright Comets (2008 Jan. 26: North)

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Updated on January 28, 2008
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Best time and the azimuth, altitude (A,h) are at lat. 35 deg in the Northern Hemisphere.

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* 17P/Holmes

Great outburst occured on Oct. 24, and it bacame a naked eye comet of 2 mag. It still keeps so bright as 3.8 mag on Jan. 25 (Toni Scarmato). It was completely stellar just after the outburst, however, then a round disk like coma is getting larger gradually. The coma diameter has increased up to about 90 arcmin, and the comet has bacome very diffuse. So it looks like a huge nebula now. This comet was also in great outburst at the discovery in 1892 and became so bright as 4 mag. At that time, the comet faded after the first outburst, but soon brightened again in the second outburst. The comet will be observable in excellent condition for a while after this. It will be easily visible with naked eyes for a while in the dark sky.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   3 11.24   40 42.6   2.335   2.824   109    4.4  18:51 (180, 84)  
Feb.  2   3 17.50   39 59.6   2.447   2.854   104    4.7  18:55 (137, 83)  

* 8P/Tuttle

It passed near by Earth in early January, and it became a bright large object at 5.4 mag (Jan. 3, Seiichi Yoshida). It was visible with naked eyes. However, it has already faded down to 6.4 mag (Jan. 25, Marco Goiato). Now the comet is moving southwards very rapidly. In the Northern Hemisphere, it keeps observable until early February, when it fades down to 7.5 mag. In the Southern Hemisphere, it keeps observable until it fades out.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   2 40.20  -36 38.9   0.493   1.027    80    6.7  18:49 (  6, 18)  
Feb.  2   2 52.06  -42 33.4   0.592   1.031    77    7.1  18:55 (  9, 11)  

* 46P/Wirtanen

Now it is 8.6 mag (Jan. 26, Juan Jose Gonzalez), already bright visually. It will reach to 8.5 mag from January to March, and will be observable in good condition. In the Northern Hemisphere, it keeps observable in good condition until July when it becomes fainter than 18 mag.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   0 47.65    2  5.2   0.952   1.062    66    8.9  18:49 ( 53, 44)  
Feb.  2   1 12.11    6 35.5   0.936   1.058    66    8.7  18:55 ( 59, 46)  

* C/2007 T1 ( McNaught )

Now it is 8.7 mag (Jan. 10, Marco Goiato), much brighter than this ephemeris. It is already unobservable in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere, it will be observable in good condition at 9-10 mag until February. In the Northern Hemisphere, it will appear in the evening sky at 11 mag in March, then it keeps observable while fading gradually until May.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  16 20.14  -81  6.1   1.214   1.231    67    9.8   5:35 (354,-28)  
Feb.  2   9 44.18  -87  9.3   1.131   1.304    75    9.9   1:33 (  0,-32)  

* C/2006 Q1 ( McNaught )

Now it is bright as 12.6 mag and visible visually (Dec. 30, Marco Goiato), brightening well as expected. It will reach to 11 mag in spring. It will keep bright for a long time, however, it keeps moving in the southern sky for a while after this. In the Northern Hemisphere, it keeps extremely low and hard to observe for a while. However, it will be getting higher after March, and will be visible visually at 11 mag in the evening sky until June. 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)  
Jan. 26   9 48.92  -51 41.2   2.776   3.209   107   12.1   1:31 (  0,  3)  
Feb.  2   9 45.76  -51 37.7   2.692   3.174   110   12.0   1:01 (  0,  3)  

* 29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 1

After an outburst on Dec. 29, some outbursts occured repeatedly until mid January. It became very bright as 10.4 mag on Jan. 15 (P. Clay Sherrod). Then it is fading gradually. But it is still bright as 12.0 mag on Jan. 24 (Tsutomu Seki).

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   5 52.74   30 14.4   5.177   5.989   142   13.4  21:32 (  0, 85)  
Feb.  2   5 50.49   30  4.1   5.252   5.991   135   13.4  21:02 (  0, 85)  

* C/2006 OF2 ( Broughton )

It is already bright and visible visually at 13.5 mag (Nov. 13, Juan Jose Gonzalez). It will reach to 10.5 mag and will be observable in good condition in 2008 autumn. It will be too low to observe in late January. It will appear in the morning sky at 12.5 mag in May, then it keeps observable, visible visually, brighter than 14 mag for one year until 2009 May.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  22 13.23    1 16.7   4.269   3.477    32   13.6  18:49 ( 82, 14)  
Feb.  2  22 21.18    2 22.8   4.266   3.427    28   13.5  18:55 ( 86,  9)  

* C/2008 A1 ( McNaught )

New bright comet. It is already visible visually at 14.0 mag (Jan. 12, Alan Hale). It is expected to be 7 mag in September. But it keeps moving in the southern sky, so it is difficult to see in the Northern Hemisphere. It will be locating in the very low sky at about 10 degree high until mid March, then it becomes unobservable in the Northern Hemisphere. It will appear in the evening sky at 7 mag in late September, but it keeps locating in the evening low sky until the end of 2008 when it fades out down to 10 mag. Then it turns to appear in the morning sky, and it keeps observable in the northern sky after that while fading gradually. In the Southern Hemisphere, it keeps observable until late October after this.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   6  8.98  -44 33.6   3.128   3.568   108   14.0  21:47 (  0, 10)  
Feb.  2   5 57.46  -44 27.8   3.093   3.493   105   13.9  21:08 (  0, 11)  

* C/2006 S5 ( Hill )

Now it is bright as 13.4 mag and visible visually (Jan. 4, Seiichi Yoshida). It keeps observable in good condition for a long time until spring. It will keep visible visually at 14 mag until March.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   7 42.97   16 33.5   1.705   2.676   168   13.9  23:22 (  0, 72)  
Feb.  2   7 40.30   16 10.0   1.740   2.691   161   14.0  22:52 (  0, 71)  

* C/2003 T12 ( SOHO )

The return of a comet discovered in 2003 by SOHO spacecraft. It can be a short periodic comet with a period of about 4 years. If so, it is expected to return in 2008 spring. If it passes the perihelion in spring, it will be visible at 12-15 mag in the evening sky. But the period is quite uncertain with an error of several months. So we have to wait until it is re-discovered by chance.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  20 37.57  -14 46.1   1.738   0.760     4   15.4  18:49 ( 82,-14)  
Feb.  2  21 14.89  -13 33.9   1.629   0.654     5   14.3  18:55 ( 82,-13)  

* 93P/Lovas 1

Now it is bright and visible visually at 13.3 mag (Jan. 4, Seiichi Yoshida). It keeps locating in good position for a while after this. But it will be fading gradually.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   2 15.09   30 24.6   1.346   1.753    96   14.3  18:49 ( 71, 78)  
Feb.  2   2 33.05   30 56.4   1.416   1.771    93   14.5  18:55 ( 79, 75)  

* 192P/2007 T3 ( Shoemaker-Levy 1 )

It was faint as 18 mag in October, but it brightened rapidly after that. Now it is bright as 13.4 mag and visible visually (Jan. 4, Seiichi Yoshida). It has already passed the perihelion. But it will be brightest after the perihelion passage. It will be visible at 14 mag until February. But the altitude will be around 30 deg. Then it is observable until April when it becomes too low at 17 mag.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   0 17.37   -5  6.6   1.840   1.541    56   14.5  18:49 ( 54, 34)  
Feb.  2   0 35.41   -1 23.9   1.906   1.571    55   14.5  18:55 ( 60, 33)  

* (3200) Phaethon

It passed very near by the Earth in early December, and became bright as 12.6 mag (Dec. 5, Juan Jose Gonzalez). The very fast motion was easily observed in the excellent condition. However, it became unobservable in mid December. It will be extremely low in the evening at 16-17 mag in February. But actually, it will never be observable again in this apparition.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  21  7.70   -9  1.8   1.346   0.450    13   14.5  18:49 ( 83, -5)  
Feb.  2  21 51.13   -3 14.6   1.468   0.622    18   15.4  18:55 ( 86,  1)  

* C/2007 F1 ( LONEOS )

It approached down to 0.4 A.U. to the sun on Oct. 28, and it reached to 5.3 mag (Oct. 25, Juan Jose Gonzalez). Now it is fading. It had already faded down to 10.1 mag on Dec. 1 (Marco Goiato). The brightening became very slow just before the perihelion passage, but it started fading rapidly after the perihelion passage. No observations have been reported recently, and the current brightness is uncertain. It will never be observable again in the Northern Hemisphere. But in the Southern Hemisphere, it keeps observable while fading gradually, although it will not locate very high.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  18 54.70  -69 27.4   2.304   1.877    52   14.5   5:35 (337,-28)  
Feb.  2  19  5.47  -71 32.0   2.343   1.986    56   14.8   5:32 (340,-28)  

* C/2007 B2 ( Skiff )

Now it is 14.3 mag, already visible visually (Jan. 19, Alan Hale). It will reach to 13.5 mag from March to July. It keeps observable in good condition for a long time until May.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  12 49.88    8 13.4   3.056   3.603   116   14.7   4:32 (  0, 63)  
Feb.  2  12 50.66    7 49.0   2.932   3.566   122   14.6   4:05 (  0, 63)  

* C/2006 U6 ( Spacewatch )

Now it is 15.7 mag (Oct. 6, Ken-ichi Kadota), brightening as expected. It will reach to 13.5 mag in the southern sky in spring and summer. In the Southern Hemisphere, it keeps observable for a long time after this. But in the Northern Hemisphere, it keeps locating extremely low until January, and will be unobservable after that. 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)  
Jan. 26   0 38.89  -46 11.7   3.280   2.869    57   14.7  18:49 ( 25,  2)  
Feb.  2   0 46.94  -45 55.6   3.283   2.834    54   14.6  18:55 ( 29,  0)  

* C/2007 G1 ( LINEAR )

Now it is 15.6 mag (Nov. 24, Ken-ichi Kadota). It was not observable temporarily, but it will be getting higher in the morning sky after January. It will be bright at 12 mag for a long time from 2008 spring to 2009 spring. However, it is only observable until August in the Northern Hemisphere because the comet moves southwards. It keeps observable for a long time in the Southern Hemisphere.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  17 52.02   -0 30.4   4.659   3.996    43   14.9   5:35 (289, 24)  
Feb.  2  17 56.89   -1  3.2   4.543   3.946    47   14.7   5:32 (293, 27)  

* C/2006 K4 ( NEAT )

Now it is 15.8 mag (Sept. 2, R. Salvo). It keeps 15 mag for a long time until spring. It had been locating low even in the Southern Hemisphere for a while, but now it is getting higher gradually. It moves in the southen sky, so it keeps observable in good condition in the Southern Hemisphere. It will never be observable again in the Northern Hemisphere.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  18 30.91  -72 36.7   3.677   3.236    56   14.9   5:35 (342,-27)  
Feb.  2  18 46.01  -74 37.0   3.621   3.249    60   14.9   5:32 (344,-28)  

* C/2005 L3 ( McNaught )

It was visible visually at 14 mag from spring to autumn in 2007. It was not observable for a while, but it is getting higher gradually in the morning sky. It will be observable at 14 mag at high location again in spring.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  17 13.58    3 19.4   6.126   5.594    53   15.0   5:35 (293, 34)  
Feb.  2  17 14.50    4  5.1   6.032   5.595    59   15.0   5:32 (297, 39)  

* 19P/Borrelly

It will reach to 11 mag in 2008 summer. It must have already brightened up to 15 mag, but the comet was not observed recently. The condition in this apparition is bad. In the Southern Hemisphere, it keeps extremely low, or under the horizon, so it will not be observable. In the Northern Hemisphere, it is not observable until August when it appears in the morning sky at 11 mag. After August, it keeps observable and fading in the morning sky.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  22 17.40  -33 40.6   3.137   2.315    27   15.3  18:49 ( 53, -7)  
Feb.  2  22 32.14  -32 11.4   3.110   2.264    25   15.2  18:55 ( 57, -9)  

* C/2007 W1 ( Boattini )

Now it is brightening up to 16.2 mag (Jan. 14, Ken-ichi Kadota). It will pass 0.85 A.U. from the sun in late June in 2008, and it is expected to reach to 6 mag. In the Northern Hemipshere, it keeps observable in good condition for a long time after this, while the comet is brightening gradually. The comet will be 14 mag in February and become visible visually. Then it is observable until around May 25, when the comet will be 7.5 mag. It will be unobservable for one and a half month around the perihelion passage. But it will appear in the morning sky again at 7 mag in early July, then it keeps observable after that while the comet is fading gradually. In the Southern Hemipsphere, it keeps observable all the period until the comet fades out, although it will be low in mid June.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  12 40.21   -8 22.6   1.990   2.538   112   15.5   4:22 (  0, 47)  
Feb.  2  12 43.53   -9 17.9   1.820   2.450   118   15.2   3:58 (  0, 46)  

* C/2006 V1 ( Catalina )

It was observed at 16 mag in 2007 spring and summer. Although it had been unobservable for a while, now it is appearing again in the Southern Hemisphere. It keeps 16 mag and observable in good condition after this until 2008 summer. In the Northern Hemisphere, it will never be observable again.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  17 28.77  -48 33.4   3.324   2.748    46   15.2   5:35 (328, -6)  
Feb.  2  17 47.82  -49  3.7   3.293   2.766    50   15.2   5:32 (328, -6)  

* 110P/Hartley 3

Now it is 14.5 mag and visible visually (Jan. 4, Seiichi Yoshida). It will be observable at 14.5-15 mag in an excellent condition until February.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   4 56.76   26 52.8   1.735   2.489   130   15.3  20:36 (  0, 82)  
Feb.  2   4 58.09   26 11.9   1.803   2.488   123   15.4  20:10 (  0, 81)  

* C/2007 K3 ( Siding Spring )

Appearing in the morning sky. It shoudl be already bright as 15 mag. It will be getting higher gradually after this, and will be observable at 14 mag in good condition from spring to summer. It will also be visible visually.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  17 39.01  -26 29.4   2.960   2.296    40   15.5   5:35 (311,  9)  
Feb.  2  17 56.60  -26  2.2   2.876   2.261    43   15.3   5:32 (312, 10)  

* C/2006 W3 ( Christensen )

It is already bright as 14.3 mag and visible visually (Dec. 9, Seiichi Yoshida). 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 Hemisphere.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   3 36.89   61 48.5   5.236   5.714   114   15.4  19:16 (180, 63)  
Feb.  2   3 28.42   61  2.4   5.278   5.666   108   15.3  18:55 (176, 64)  

* 2005 WY3

Peculiar asteroid moving on a cometary orbit. It brightened up to 16.9 mag on Nov. 20 (Siding Spring Survey), but still completely asteroidal. It will reach to 15 mag in February and March. In the Northern Hemisphere, it keeps observable until July when it becomes fainter than 18 mag. It may show a cometary activity after this, although the perihelion distance is somewhat large as 1.8 A.U.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  10  9.74  -32  1.5   1.037   1.783   123   15.6   1:52 (  0, 23)  
Feb.  2  10 12.42  -31 16.7   0.997   1.786   128   15.4   1:27 (  0, 24)  

* 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup

It was so faint as 18 mag still in mid January. However, it must be brightening rapidly. It is expected to reach to 13 mag in March and April, and to be visible visually. It keeps observable in good condition for a long time in the Southern Hemisphere. In the Northern Hemisphre, it keeps locating low until March. But it will be getting higher after April and observable while the comet is fading.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  13 10.19  -38 23.5   0.848   1.333    93   15.9   4:51 (  0, 17)  
Feb.  2  13 43.67  -40 10.2   0.785   1.289    92   15.6   4:57 (  0, 15)  

* P/2007 H1 ( McNaught )

It reached up to 12.6 mag and was bright visually in autumn (Oct. 5, Seiichi Yoshida). Now it is fading. It was still visible visually at 14.0 mag on Dec. 9 (Seiichi Yoshida), but it is already hard to see visually. It will be fading and getting lower after this. It is observable until March when it becomes too low at 17 mag.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   1 12.40   -3 52.6   2.690   2.533    70   15.9  18:49 ( 41, 43)  
Feb.  2   1 22.17   -2 38.8   2.790   2.553    66   16.1  18:55 ( 49, 40)  

* 70P/Kojima

Now it is 16.8 mag (Nov. 23, Ken-ichi Kadota), brightening as expected. It keeps observable at 16.5 mag in good condition for a long time until April.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  12 42.16    2 38.9   1.581   2.203   116   16.3   4:24 (  0, 58)  
Feb.  2  12 45.33    2 54.9   1.532   2.226   122   16.3   4:00 (  0, 58)  

* 50P/Arend

Now it is visible visually at 14.6 mag (Jan. 4, Seiichi Yoshida). It keeps observable in good condition until it fades out in spring.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   2 47.08   42 55.0   1.574   2.071   105   16.4  18:49 (154, 81)  
Feb.  2   3  0.67   42 39.4   1.658   2.094   101   16.5  18:55 (137, 79)  

* C/2006 K1 ( McNaught )

Now it is 16.2 mag (Nov. 24, Ken-ichi Kadota). It keeps observable in the evening sky until March.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   2 49.35  -14 25.7   4.588   4.687    89   16.5  18:49 (  6, 40)  
Feb.  2   2 50.68  -12 53.5   4.702   4.705    84   16.6  18:55 ( 17, 41)  

* 74P/Smirnova-Chernykh

It will reach to 15 mag in 2009 and 2010. Now it is 16.5 mag (Dec. 18, J. R. Vidal). It will be observable at 16.5 mag in good condition until March.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   4 45.79   23 21.5   3.302   3.982   127   16.6  20:25 (  0, 78)  
Feb.  2   4 44.88   23 25.5   3.382   3.973   120   16.6  19:57 (  0, 78)  

* 124P/Mrkos

Now it is 18.0 mag (Jan. 7, Ken-ichi Kadota). It will reach to 16 mag from February to April, and will be observable in good condition.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  11 28.86   60 56.9   0.956   1.741   127   16.9   3:11 (180, 64)  
Feb.  2  11 18.17   61 19.1   0.901   1.706   129   16.7   2:33 (180, 64)  

* C/2007 U1 ( LINEAR )

It will reach to 15.5 mag in 2008 autumn and will be observable in good condition. In this winter, it is observable at 17 mag in good condition until March.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   5  6.42    5 33.0   3.097   3.789   128   16.7  20:45 (  0, 61)  
Feb.  2   4 54.74    6 16.9   3.177   3.759   119   16.8  20:06 (  0, 61)  

* 188P/2007 J7 ( LINEAR-Mueller )

It was visible visually at 14.4 mag in autumn (Oct. 6, Seiichi Yoshida). But it is fading now, and it has already faded down to 17 mag in mid December.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   0 47.56   11 44.6   2.726   2.568    70   16.8  18:49 ( 63, 51)  
Feb.  2   0 57.47   12 51.4   2.813   2.574    65   16.8  18:55 ( 70, 47)  

* C/2003 WT42 ( LINEAR )

It was observed visually as bright as 13 mag from late 2005 to early 2006. Now it is fading. It is appearing in the morning sky again. It will be observable in good condition at 17 mag for a long time until June.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  14 26.58   -0 39.9   6.990   7.071    90   16.8   5:35 (346, 53)  
Feb.  2  14 27.64   -0 45.7   6.910   7.104    97   16.8   5:32 (356, 54)  

* 180P/2006 U3 ( NEAT )

Now it is 18.3 mag (Dec. 14, Ken-ichi Kadota). It will be observable in good condition for a hile until spring. It will reach to 16.5 mag in March.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  11  3.50   30 10.1   1.732   2.591   143   17.0   2:46 (  0, 85)  
Feb.  2  11  2.01   31 23.5   1.684   2.578   148   16.9   2:17 (  0, 86)  

* 65P/Gunn

It will reach to 13 mag in 2010. Now it is around the aphelion, but it is observable at 17 mag in good condition.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   8 40.01   30  1.6   3.291   4.261   168   16.9   0:23 (  0, 85)  
Feb.  2   8 34.52   30 24.8   3.286   4.247   165   16.9  23:45 (  0, 85)  

* C/2007 M2 ( Catalina )

It keeps 16 mag for one year from 2008 spring to 2009 spring. In the Northern Hemisphere, it keeps observable in good condition while the comet is brightening until 2008 spring. But the comet moves southwards after that, and it will never observable after 2008 July.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  12 50.07   13 13.2   3.993   4.535   117   17.1   4:32 (  0, 68)  
Feb.  2  12 46.31   12 59.8   3.857   4.498   125   17.0   4:01 (  0, 68)  

* P/2007 T6 ( Catalina )

It will be observable at 17 mag in good condition until February.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   9 17.56   33  7.1   1.612   2.567   162   17.1   1:00 (  0, 88)  
Feb.  2   9 12.23   34 28.4   1.637   2.594   162   17.2   0:28 (  0, 89)  

* 191P/2007 N1 ( McNaught )

It kept brightening even after the perihelion passage, and reached to the maximum brightness at 15.5 mag in mid November. It was also visible visually at 14.5 mag (Nov. 14, Alan Hale). But it is fading now. It has already faded down to 16.8 mag (Dec. 17, Charles Bell).

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   3  1.25   10 41.5   1.894   2.290   100   17.1  18:49 (  4, 66)  
Feb.  2   3  8.90   11 50.4   1.998   2.314    95   17.3  18:55 ( 20, 66)  

* C/2007 T5 ( Gibbs )

It will be observable at 17.5 mag in good condition until May.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   8 17.03   33 49.6   3.206   4.164   164   17.2   0:00 (  0, 89)  
Feb.  2   8 12.68   34 60.0   3.215   4.151   159   17.2  23:24 (180, 90)  

* C/2002 VQ94 ( LINEAR )

It had been observed at 16.5 mag for a long time from 2005 to 2007. Now it is fading. But it keeps observable at 17.5 mag in good condition for a long time until July.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  14 38.43   15 25.6   8.078   8.192    93   17.5   5:35 (330, 68)  
Feb.  2  14 38.51   15 29.0   7.998   8.216    99   17.5   5:32 (345, 70)  

* C/2007 D1 ( LINEAR )

Now it is 17.8 mag (Nov. 18, Ken-ichi Kadota). It was observed at 17.5 mag in early 2007. It will be observable at 17.5 mag again in this winter.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26  11 11.97   -1 12.3   8.157   8.886   135   17.5   2:54 (  0, 54)  
Feb.  2  11 10.99   -0 52.3   8.086   8.892   142   17.5   2:26 (  0, 54)  

* C/2007 Y1 ( LINEAR )

It will be observable at 17.5-18 mag until March.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   9 19.41   -4 44.9   2.469   3.378   153   17.7   1:02 (  0, 50)  
Feb.  2   9  8.07   -1 57.3   2.423   3.369   160   17.7   0:24 (  0, 53)  

* C/2006 M1 ( LINEAR )

Now it is 17.5 mag (Nov. 25, Ken-ichi Kadota). Because it is distant object, it kept 17 mag for one year and a half. But it will be fading after this, and will be fainter than 18 mag in February.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   2 34.69   13 29.2   4.481   4.676    95   17.8  18:49 ( 22, 67)  
Feb.  2   2 37.52   13  1.5   4.632   4.714    88   17.9  18:55 ( 38, 64)  

* 173P/2005 T1 ( Mueller 5 )

It was observed bright at 16.5-17 mag from late 2006 to early 2007. However, it is fading after that, although it is getting closer to the sun. Now it is observable in good condition, but very faint at 18.4 mag (Nov. 21, Ken-ichi Kadota). This comet was observed so faint around the perihelion passage in the previous apparition at the discovery. So probably, it faded out before the perihelion passage again.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   7 40.65   27  5.6   3.281   4.242   165   18.7  23:19 (  0, 82)  
Feb.  2   7 36.63   27 30.5   3.308   4.239   158   18.8  22:48 (  0, 83)  

* 128P/Shoemaker-Holt 1

Now it is 18.6 mag (Nov. 16, Ken-ichi Kadota). In the previous apparition in 1997, it brightened after the perihelion passage, and observed visually at 13 mag. However, such a brightening did not happen and the comet kept faint in the current apparition. It became fainter by 3-4 mag than the previous apparition.

Date(TT)  R.A. (2000) Decl.   Delta     r    Elong.  m1   Best Time(A, h)  
Jan. 26   6 57.72   16 51.8   2.374   3.307   157   18.9  22:36 (  0, 72)  
Feb.  2   6 54.13   17  1.6   2.430   3.320   150   19.0  22:05 (  0, 72)  

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Copyright(C) Seiichi Yoshida (comet@aerith.net). All rights reserved.