Weekly Information about Bright Comets (2017 Feb. 18: South)

Japanese version Home page	Updated on February 20, 2017
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Best time and the azimuth, altitude (A,h) are at lat. 35 deg in the Southern Hemisphere. Azimuth indicates 0 for south, 90 for west, 180 for north, 270 for east.

2P/Encke Now it is very bright as 8.8 mag (Feb. 16, Danil Sidorko). It will pass the perihelion on Mar. 10. In the Northern Hemisphere, it stays observable until late February. In the Southern Hemisphere, it will appear in the morning sky in late March at 8 mag, then it stays observable while the comet will be fading. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 0 2.04 7 38.9 1.034 0.607 34 8.9 20:20 ( 95, -7) Feb. 25 0 8.58 7 1.0 0.899 0.480 28 7.8 20:10 ( 92, -9) 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova It approached to the earth down to 0.08 a.u. in mid February, and brightened up to 6.5 mag (Feb. 10, Danil Sidorko). It will fade out rapidly after this. Now it is 8.3 mag (Feb. 19, Maik Meyer). It will be fainter than 10 mag in late February. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 13 5.23 32 32.8 0.121 1.076 133 7.9 3:19 (180, 22) Feb. 25 11 37.41 28 32.7 0.200 1.175 155 9.6 1:21 (180, 26) C/2015 V2 ( Johnson ) Now it is 10.4 mag (Feb. 16, Juan Jose Gonzalez). It is expected to brighten up to 7 mag in summer. In the Northern Hemisphere, it stays observable in good condition until the highlight while the comet will be brightening. In the Southern Hemisphere, it stays extremely low for a while. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 16 2.63 45 26.2 1.837 2.216 98 9.5 4:06 (201, 5) Feb. 25 16 12.06 45 51.1 1.752 2.158 100 9.3 4:14 (197, 6) C/2015 ER61 ( PanSTARRS ) Now it is 11.0 mag (Feb. 17, Chris Wyatt). It is expected to brighten up to 7 mag in spring. But it locates somewhat low at the high light. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 17 22.84 -23 54.6 1.762 1.662 67 9.9 4:06 (270, 44) Feb. 25 17 49.30 -23 46.4 1.644 1.582 68 9.6 4:14 (269, 46) 41P/Tuttle-Giacobini-Kresak Now it is 11.4 mag (Feb. 18, Maik Meyer). It will approach to the earth down to 0.14 a.u. from March to April. It is expected to brighten up to 5-6 mag. It may brighten furthermore in outburst. It is observable in excellent condition in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere, it will not be observable for about one month around the highlight. But it stays observable in good condition except for that period. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 9 35.95 19 4.1 0.282 1.266 169 11.4 23:42 (180, 36) Feb. 25 9 40.23 24 24.6 0.240 1.218 160 10.1 23:19 (180, 30) 73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 3 Bright new fragment BT was discovered on Feb. 10. Now the fragment BT is very bright as 10.8 mag (Feb. 17, Chris Wyatt). The primary component is 13.4 mag (Jan. 28, Piotr Guzik). It will be unobservable soon in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere, it stays observable for a long time after this. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 18 45.18 -20 53.0 1.387 1.045 48 12.0 4:06 (278, 26) Feb. 25 19 22.47 -21 9.9 1.380 1.013 47 11.9 4:14 (278, 26) C/2016 U1 ( NEOWISE ) It brightened rapidly up to 6.8 mag (Jan. 6, Katsumi Yoshimoto). It approached to the sun down to 0.3 a.u. on Jan. 14. Michael Mattiazzo reported that the comet was visible in the SWAN images from Jan. 19 to Jan. 29 while it faded from 5 mag to 7 mag. It is not observable after this in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere, it is appearing in the extremely low sky in the evening. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 22 51.41 -32 5.6 1.788 0.958 22 12.1 20:20 ( 53, 4) Feb. 25 23 23.18 -30 29.1 1.921 1.098 24 12.8 20:10 ( 56, 5) 103P/Hartley 2 It has not been observed yet in this apparition. The condition of this apparition is worst. It will brighten up to 10 mag in spring, but not observable at all. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 22 21.07 -3 0.6 2.313 1.348 9 14.1 20:20 ( 71,-21) Feb. 25 22 43.98 -1 17.2 2.267 1.296 8 13.7 20:10 ( 73,-21) 29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 1 Now it is not observable. It will appear in the morning sky in March. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 20 49.78 -18 36.6 6.787 5.864 19 13.9 4:06 (293, 0) Feb. 25 20 55.30 -18 10.4 6.743 5.863 25 13.9 4:14 (288, 6) 315P/2013 V6 ( LONEOS ) Now it is 13.7 mag (Jan. 24, Juan Jose Gonzalez). It is observable in excellent condition in the Northern Hemisphere. It stays low in the Southern Hemisphere. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 12 3.57 30 58.6 1.603 2.489 146 14.1 2:13 (180, 24) Feb. 25 12 0.08 31 38.7 1.597 2.502 149 14.2 1:42 (180, 23) 71P/Clark Now it is 16.9 mag (Jan. 26, Alexander Baransky). It will brighten up to 10 mag in summer, and it will be observable in excellent condition in the Southern Hemisphere. It locates low in the Northern Hemisphere. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 15 20.21 -10 43.0 1.591 1.996 98 14.9 4:06 (223, 59) Feb. 25 15 31.32 -11 30.5 1.486 1.961 102 14.6 4:14 (213, 63) C/2016 R2 ( PanSTARRS ) Now it is bright as 14.4 mag (Jan. 14, Thomas Lehmann). It will be observable at 11 mag for a long time from 2017 to 2018. Now it is observable in excellent condition in the Southern Hemisphere. But it stays low for a while in the Northern Hemisphere. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 2 50.62 -27 36.8 5.373 5.088 68 14.7 20:20 ( 85, 46) Feb. 25 2 53.18 -26 12.1 5.394 5.035 63 14.7 20:10 ( 85, 43) C/2011 KP36 ( Spacewatch ) Now it is 14.3 mag (Dec. 31, Jakub Cerny). It will be unobservable in March. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 1 13.86 -1 52.7 5.865 5.250 47 15.0 20:20 ( 97, 13) Feb. 25 1 19.49 -1 22.7 5.959 5.269 42 15.1 20:10 ( 96, 11) 65P/Gunn Now it is 15.7 mag (Jan. 4, T. Ikemura, H. Sato). It will brighten up to 14 mag from spring to summer. It locates somewhat low in the Northern Hemisphere. The perihelion distance increased from 2.4 a.u. to 2.9 a.u. in this apparition. So it will not be bright as before. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 16 7.60 -18 5.7 3.052 3.140 85 15.2 4:06 (248, 57) Feb. 25 16 13.58 -18 29.1 2.942 3.128 91 15.1 4:14 (240, 62) 93P/Lovas 1 Now it is 15.3 mag (Jan. 31, Alexander Baransky). It stays 15 mag until spring. But it is already unobservable in the Southern Hemisphere. It will be getting lower gradually after this also in the Northern Hemisphere. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 1 0.71 16 16.4 2.133 1.704 51 15.1 20:20 (110, 0) Feb. 25 1 19.08 18 8.9 2.170 1.701 49 15.1 20:10 (112, -1) C/2015 VL62 ( Lemmon-Yeung-PanSTARRS ) Now it is 15.6 mag (Jan. 31, Alexander Baransky). It will brighten up to 12-13 mag and will be observable in good condition in summer. It ia already unobservable in the Southern Hemisphere. It will be unobservable soon also in the Northern Hemisphere. It will appear in the morning sky in May. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 0 8.20 13 28.7 4.057 3.354 39 15.3 20:20 (100, -9) Feb. 25 0 9.03 13 21.1 4.101 3.314 32 15.3 20:10 ( 98,-12) C/2015 O1 ( PanSTARRS ) Now it is 16.7 mag (Nov. 3, Kunihiro Shima). It will be observable at 13 mag for a long time from 2017 to 2018. It is appearing in the morning sky again. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 19 7.55 -1 2.8 5.541 4.898 45 15.4 4:06 (264, 11) Feb. 25 19 9.29 -0 7.7 5.417 4.860 51 15.3 4:14 (258, 17) 81P/Wild 2 It brightened up to 11 mag from spring to summer in 2016. It is appearing in the morning sky again. It will be observable at 16-17 mag in good condition from spring to summer. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 19 7.59 -20 38.8 3.121 2.499 43 15.6 4:06 (281, 22) Feb. 25 19 19.02 -20 19.1 3.096 2.540 47 15.7 4:14 (277, 26) 74P/Smirnova-Chernykh Now it is 15.6 mag (Jan. 9, J. L. Martin). It stays observable at 16 mag in good condition until spring. It locates low in the Southern Hemisphere. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 6 44.31 27 44.2 3.009 3.726 130 15.8 20:50 (180, 27) Feb. 25 6 43.26 27 44.7 3.084 3.719 123 15.9 20:22 (180, 27) 43P/Wolf-Harrington It brightened up to 11-12 mag from summer to autumn. Now it is fading. But it is bright as 13.6 mag still now (Jan. 24, Seiichi Yoshida). Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 12 24.32 -27 39.0 1.556 2.303 128 15.8 2:33 (180, 83) Feb. 25 12 19.05 -27 34.7 1.544 2.351 135 16.0 2:01 (180, 83) C/2014 B1 ( Schwartz ) Now it is 15.6 mag (Jan. 26, Alexander Baransky). It stays 16-17 mag for a long time from 2016 to 2019. It stays near by the equator. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 9 11.09 3 23.3 8.670 9.624 164 15.9 23:16 (180, 52) Feb. 25 9 9.57 3 42.8 8.691 9.620 158 15.9 22:47 (180, 51) C/2016 B1 ( NEOWISE ) It was observed at 16 mag from spring to summer in 2016. It will be observable at 16 mag also in 2017 from winter to spring. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 17 45.39 -5 0.4 3.586 3.286 64 16.1 4:06 (254, 30) Feb. 25 17 52.93 -3 27.6 3.513 3.301 69 16.1 4:14 (247, 34) 144P/Kushida It brightened up to 11-12 mag in autumn. Now it is fading. But it is bright as 13.9 mag still now (Jan. 24, Seiichi Yoshida). Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 13 55.71 -16 48.1 1.672 2.289 116 16.1 4:04 (180, 72) Feb. 25 13 55.03 -16 49.1 1.641 2.339 123 16.3 3:36 (180, 72) C/2014 W2 ( PanSTARRS ) It stayed bright 12 mag for a long time from autum in 2015 to summer in 2016. Now it is fading. It has already faded dwon to 15.6 mag (Jan. 6, Hiroshi Abe). Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 17 22.47 -6 9.1 4.588 4.350 69 16.2 4:06 (251, 35) Feb. 25 17 24.00 -6 32.5 4.529 4.401 76 16.3 4:14 (244, 42) C/2016 A1 ( PanSTARRS ) Now it is 16.5 mag (Jan. 26, Alexander Baransky). It stays 16 mag for a long time from 2017 to 2018. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 8 51.73 -3 24.2 4.796 5.714 156 16.5 22:57 (180, 58) Feb. 25 8 45.62 -2 5.3 4.809 5.696 151 16.5 22:23 (180, 57) C/2015 V1 ( PanSTARRS ) Now it is 16.5 mag (Dec. 29, Sandor Szabo). It will brighten up to 15 mag and will be observable in good condition from autum to winter in 2017. In the Northern Hemisphere, it stays observable in good condition for a long time while the comet will be brightening. It is not observable until summer in the Southern Hemisphere. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 1 53.19 39 13.6 5.131 4.940 73 16.5 20:20 (135, -6) Feb. 25 1 54.35 38 12.8 5.218 4.912 66 16.5 20:10 (132, -7) C/2013 US10 ( Catalina ) It brightened up to 6 mag from autumn in 2015 to early 2016. Now it is fading. It has already faded down to 16.0 mag (Jan. 1, Yuji Ohshima). It is observable in good condition in the Northern Hemisphere. It is not observable after this in the Southern Hemisphere. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 2 54.62 45 43.3 5.827 5.848 86 16.5 20:20 (148, -2) Feb. 25 2 55.82 45 8.3 6.002 5.913 80 16.6 20:10 (145, -4) C/2016 M1 ( PanSTARRS ) Now it is 16.8 mag (Jan. 6, D. Buczynski). It is expected to brighten up to 9 mag in summer in 2018. In the Northern Hemisphere, it stays observable until 2018 summer while the comet will be brightening. In the Southern Hemisphere, it is hardly observable in 2017, but it will be observable in good condition in 2018. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 18 54.64 45 32.7 6.094 5.857 71 16.6 4:06 (224,-15) Feb. 25 18 58.96 45 55.5 6.016 5.801 72 16.5 4:14 (220,-11) C/2014 OE4 ( PanSTARRS ) Now it is 16.5 mag (Dec. 26, A. Diepvens). It stays 16.5 mag from 2016 to 2017. In the Northern Hemisphere, it stays observable in good condition for a long time. In the Southern Hemisphere, it will never be observable again. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 18 31.94 42 8.5 6.484 6.262 72 16.6 4:06 (224, -9) Feb. 25 18 37.32 43 26.4 6.452 6.266 74 16.6 4:14 (220, -6) C/2015 TQ209 ( LINEAR ) It has not been observed since last April. Now it is fading. But it must be bright as 16 mag still now. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 16 50.99 -20 40.5 2.801 2.726 75 16.6 4:06 (261, 49) Feb. 25 16 57.17 -20 28.4 2.775 2.797 81 16.7 4:14 (255, 55) 213P/Van Ness It has not been observed yet in this apparition. It will brighten up to 12 mag in summer. It will be observable in excellent condition in the Southern Hemisphere. It locates somewhat low in the Northern Hemisphere. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 17 23.33 -32 14.1 2.757 2.546 67 16.9 4:06 (282, 47) Feb. 25 17 36.16 -32 32.6 2.647 2.518 71 16.6 4:14 (280, 52) C/2016 VZ18 ( PanSTARRS ) Now it is 19.4 mag (Jan. 25, D. Abreu, et al.). Small comet, but it approaches to the sun down to 0.9 a.u., and to the earth down to 0.5 a.u., and it will brighten up to 16-17 mag from February to April. It is observable in excellent condition in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere, it stays observable only until mid February. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 2 8.35 18 39.7 0.695 0.962 67 17.0 20:20 (123, 11) Feb. 25 2 18.38 25 53.8 0.654 0.929 65 16.8 20:10 (127, 4) C/2014 R3 ( PanSTARRS ) Now it is 17.1 mag (Jan. 9, ATLAS-HKO, Haleakala). It brightened rapidly, and became brighter than originally expected. It stays 17 mag until 2017. In the Northern Hemisphere, it stays observable in excellent condition for a long time. It is not observable in the Southern Hemisphere. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 13 15.84 60 26.2 6.833 7.380 120 16.9 3:25 (180, -5) Feb. 25 13 7.33 60 53.5 6.829 7.387 120 16.9 2:49 (180, -6) C/2013 V4 ( Catalina ) It brightened up to 15 mag in early 2016. Now it is fading. It has already faded down to 16.3 mag (Dec. 30, Sandor Szabo). In the Northern Hemisphere, it stays observable in good condition for a long time until 2017 autumn when the comet will be fainter than 18 mag. It will never be observable after this in the Southern Hemisphere. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 15 36.34 69 47.3 6.068 6.372 103 17.0 4:06 (189,-16) Feb. 25 15 34.49 70 21.1 6.098 6.402 103 17.0 4:14 (185,-16) C/2015 X7 ( ATLAS ) Now it is 16.9 mag (Feb. 1, Alexander Baransky). It was observed at 17 mag last winter. It will be observable at 17 mag again next winter. It is observable in good condition in the Northern Hemisphere. But it locates low in the Southern Hemisphere. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 11 19.84 34 51.0 3.206 4.101 151 17.2 1:29 (180, 20) Feb. 25 11 16.42 36 28.4 3.235 4.128 150 17.2 0:58 (180, 19) P/2015 TP200 ( LINEAR ) Now it is 16.1 mag (Dec. 30, Yuji Ohshima). It is observable in excellent condition in the Northern Hemisphere. It locates low in the Southern Hemisphere. It will be fainter than 18 mag in March. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 6 41.66 33 47.9 2.767 3.472 128 17.2 20:48 (180, 21) Feb. 25 6 42.16 33 25.5 2.855 3.482 122 17.3 20:21 (180, 22) C/2010 U3 ( Boattini ) It will pass the perihelion in 2019. However, it has not been brightening since the discovery in 2010. Now it is 17.1 mag (Jan. 4, T. Ikemura, H. Sato). It stays observable in excellent condition in the Northern Hemisphere. It is not observable in the Southern Hemisphere. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 3 42.71 60 32.1 9.311 9.489 97 17.2 20:20 (162,-10) Feb. 25 3 44.11 60 20.8 9.383 9.471 92 17.2 20:10 (160,-11) C/2016 T2 ( Matheny ) Now it is 17.2 mag (Dec. 30, A. Diepvens). In the Northern Hemisphere, it is observable at 17-18 mag until March. It is not observable in the Southern Hemisphere. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 18 21.99 69 12.2 1.751 2.007 89 17.2 4:06 (201,-25) Feb. 25 18 3.81 74 5.8 1.731 2.035 92 17.3 4:14 (194,-24) 118P/Shoemaker-Levy 4 Now it is 18.2 mag (Dec. 6, T. Ikemura, H. Sato). It was expected to be observable at 17 mag in good condition in winter. But actually, it is fainter than this ephemeris. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 12 49.14 0 24.9 1.873 2.689 137 17.3 2:58 (180, 55) Feb. 25 12 46.51 1 11.3 1.844 2.720 145 17.4 2:28 (180, 54) 94P/Russell 4 Now it is 17.4 mag (Jan. 25, Alexander Baransky). It is observable at 17.5 mag in good condition from winter to spring. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 14 59.28 -10 58.4 1.925 2.362 103 17.5 4:06 (214, 62) Feb. 25 15 4.23 -11 16.5 1.858 2.377 109 17.5 4:14 (198, 65) 56P/Slaughter-Burnham It brightened up to 14.6 mag from autum to winter (Dec. 2, Kunihiro Shima). Now it is fading. It has already faded down to 16.9 mag (Jan. 31, Alexander Baransky). It will be fainter than 18 mag in March. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 4 22.73 30 38.5 2.650 2.979 99 17.5 20:20 (155, 19) Feb. 25 4 29.46 30 30.5 2.769 3.005 94 17.7 20:10 (153, 18) C/2014 S2 ( PanSTARRS ) It brightened up to 8-9 mag from winter to spring in 2016. Now it is fading. It has already faded down to 17.1 mag (Dec. 6, T. Ikemura, H. Sato). Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 13 2.38 -15 21.2 4.353 5.028 128 17.6 3:11 (180, 70) Feb. 25 12 57.74 -15 40.7 4.324 5.086 136 17.7 2:39 (180, 71) C/2017 A3 ( Elenin ) Now it is 17.3 mag (Jan. 8, CAO, San Pedro de Atacama). It is observable at 17.5 mag in good condition in this winter in the Southern Hemisphere. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 5 53.61 -36 29.0 3.507 3.862 103 17.6 20:20 ( 72, 85) Feb. 25 5 49.65 -33 36.3 3.559 3.865 100 17.6 20:10 ( 97, 81) 330P/2015 U1 ( Catalina ) Now it is 18.9 mag (Dec. 27, K. Hills). It is observable at 18 mag in good condition from January to March. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Feb. 18 10 37.21 -8 27.2 2.271 3.211 158 17.8 0:47 (180, 64) Feb. 25 10 32.54 -8 29.0 2.274 3.231 162 17.9 0:14 (180, 64)