Monthly Information about Comets in January, 1998

Japanese version Home page	Updated on January 7, 1998
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The finding charts are made with StellaNavigator Ver.2.0 for Windows (AstroArts / ASCII).

Comets Ranking Bright Comets Faint Comets Ephemeris Table

Comets Ranking

Here is the ranking of comets in January, 1998. 55P/Tempel-Tuttle has brightened drastically in late December and finally become a visual object after our long anxieties. It closes to the earth down to 0.36 AU and reaches to 8 mag, moving fast in the northern sky this month. 103P/Hartley 2 is still 8 mag in the evening, but turns to become fainter after this. C/1997 T1 ( Utsunomiya ) and C/1997 J2 ( Meunier-Dupouy ) are both 11 mag but hard to observe because of conjunction with the sun. C/1995 O1 ( Hale-Bopp ) in the southern sky began to fade out a bit more rapidly in October, which reached to 7.5 mag at the end of 1997. 134P/Kowal-Vavrova has recovered but much fainter than expected, 20.8-21.8 mag. No. 1 C/1995 O1 ( Hale-Bopp ) 7.5 -> 8 mag No. 2 55P/Tempel-Tuttle 11 -> 8 -> 8.5 mag No. 3 103P/Hartley 2 9 -> 10 mag No. 4 C/1997 T1 ( Utsunomiya ) 11 -> 11.5 mag No. 5 C/1997 J2 ( Meunier-Dupouy ) 11.5 mag No. 6 78P/Gehrels 2 12.5 -> 13 mag No. 7 104P/Kowal 2 13 mag No. 8 43P/Wolf-Harrington 13 -> 13.5 mag No. 9 C/1997 D1 ( Mueller ) 13 -> 14 mag No. 10 29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 1 14 mag Other faint comets are as follows. C/1997 J1 ( Mueller ) 15 -> 15.5 mag 69P/Taylor 15.5 mag C/1997 G2 ( Montani ) 15.5 mag 128P/Shoemaker-Holt 1 15.5 -> 16 mag 95P/Chiron 16 mag D/1952 B1 ( Harrington-Wilson ) 16 mag 88P/Howell 17 -> 16 mag 65P/Gunn 16 -> 16.5 mag C/1996 J1 ( Evans-Drinkwater ) 16.5 -> 17 mag 132P/Helin-Roman-Alu 2 16.5 -> 17.5 mag 48P/Johnson 16.5 -> 17 mag P/1997 V1 ( Larsen ) 17 mag 129P/Shoemaker-Levy 3 17 mag C/1997 BA6 ( Spacewatch ) 17.5 mag C/1997 O1 ( Tilbrook ) 17.5 -> 18.5 mag 22P/Kopff 17.5 -> 18 mag 1997 CU26 17.5 mag (5145) Pholus 18 mag C/1997 A1 ( NEAT ) 18 -> 19 mag 1997 MD10 18.5 -> 19 mag 74P/Smirnova-Chernykh 18.5 mag P/1996 R2 ( Lagerkvist ) 18.5 -> 19 mag 131P/Mueller 2 18.5 -> 19 mag C/1997 L1 ( Xinglong ) 18.5 mag 85P/Boethin 18.5 -> 19 mag C/1996 P2 ( Russell-Watson ) 19 mag 62P/Tsuchinshan 1 19 mag P/1997 G1 ( Montani ) 19 mag 80P/Peters-Hartley 20 -> 19 mag P/1997 T3 19.5 mag 133P/Elst-Pizarro 19.5 -> 20 mag 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup 20 -> 20.5 mag 37P/Forbes 20.5 -> 20 mag D/1977 C1 ( Skiff-Kosai ) 20 mag P/1992 G2 ( Shoemaker-Levy 8 ) 20.5 -> 20 mag 134P/Kowal-Vavrova 21 -> 20.5 mag Observable now Not observable in the Northern Hemisphere Periodic comets not yet observed at this return Periodic comets not yet observed at this return but not observable in the Northern Hemisphere

Bright Comets

C/1995 O1 ( Hale-Bopp ) [Finding Chart] Comet Hale-Bopp was observed again in Japan from September to October as 5-6 mag in the southeastern low sky at dawn. But it has gone southwards after final observation in Japan in early November. It will never be seen again in the Northern Hemisphere, except for some low latitude countries. The comet has been fading out slowly along the equation: m1 = -1.0 + 5 log d + 7.9 log r and kept about 5.5 mag still in October. However, it began to fade out a bit more rapidly after that and reached to 7.5 mag at the end of 1997. The current ephemeris depends on the magnitude equation: m1 = -1.4 + 5 log d + 10.0 log r Anyway, because this comet is so big, it will take several years to fade out gradually. It will keep the brightness as 11-12 mag even at the end of 1998. It is in Dorado, just north of the Large Magellanic Cloud this month. It closes to LMC down to 6 deg in mid January. The comet locates very high in the Southern Hemisphere. Though it becomes further than 4 AU from the sun this month, it still keeps so bright as 7.5 -> 8 mag. The earth passes the point where the orbits of Comet Hale-Bopp and the earth closes most on Jan. 3. Some predict that some meteors related to this comet may appear at that time if there are meteorites moving on the comet's orbit. However the distance of both orbits is farther than 0.1 AU, so the possibility is very small. In addition, Quadrantids becomes at the peak on that day. The radiant point predicted from Comet Hale-Bopp is around the head of Bootus, which is very near to that of Quadrantids. Therefore it is extremely hard to catch a meteor from the comet visually.

55P/Tempel-Tuttle [Finding Chart 1] [Finding Chart 2] Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle has finally become a visual object. Appearing again at dawn in early November, the comet was observed as 18.4-19.5, about 2 mag fainter than expected. In December, about 17.6 mag on Dec. 4 and 16.6 mag on Dec. 11, which were about 3 mag fainter. So some worried that it reaches only to 11 mag or fainter at best in January. It was observed visually on Dec. 25 morning as 13.8 mag. But the comet suddenly brightens in three days after that. It was observed as 11-12 mag with 3-4 arcmin diameter on Dec. 28 morning. Some reported as 10 mag after that. There reports means the comet finally became as bright as expected. However, the comet has a large diameter despite the faintness, and it is extremely diffused. Therefore it is hardly seen under light pollution. We need to go to dark place and observe it in lower magnification. It closes to the earth down to 0.36 AU on Jan. 17, so it moves drastically in the northern sky. In the early January it moves northwards rapidly from Canes Venatici to the Big Dipper and locates high after midnight. The comet brightens from 11 to 9 mag in this period. In the middle of January it becomes at opposition near by Polaris, so it locates high in the north at midnight and we can observe it all night. Jan. 17 is the day and the brightness also becomes at peak, as 9 -> 8 mag. In addition the declination reaches +83 deg, which means the comet approaches to Polaris most on the day. In late January it moves into the evening sky and locates high in the northwest. It moves southwards rapidly from Cassiopeia, across Andromeda, into Pisces. Though it goes far away from the earth, it keeps closing to the sun until the perihelion passage on Feb. 28. So it fades out slowly as 8 -> 8.5 mag. On the other hand, the Southern observers unfortunately cannot see the comet this month at all. By the way, in 1866 the comet reached to 5 mag, about 2 mag brighter than expected, just around the perihelion passage. In this return, it is getting brighter rapidly so far. Therefore, the comet may become much brighter than expected after this. Anyway this is the best comet in January and February, requiring everyone's observation. In this return, the condition after perihelion is bad and we in the Northern Hemisphere can hardly observe the comet. So the best season is until early March for the Northern observers. Because the comet moves drastically on the celestial globe this month, it approaches to many nebulae or other remarkable objects. Here is the list of such rendezvous. 6, morning 1 deg to beta-CVn, galaxy NGC4490(9.8 mag, 5.9') galaxy M94(8.1 mag, 11') 3.5 deg in the east 7, morning 1 deg west of galaxy NGC4449(9.3 mag, 5.0') 8-9 3 deg to galaxy M106(8.3 mag, 18') 10, morning 3.5 deg east of galaxy M109(9.8 mag, 7.5') 11, morning 15 arcmin to delta-UMa about 3 deg to SN1997ei 13, morning 1.5 deg west of galaxy NGC4125(9.8 mag, 5.0') 21, evening 30 arcmin east of epsilon-Cas 21-22 4 deg to open cluster M103(7.4 mag, 6.0') 22, evening 5 deg west of h-Chi Per 23, evening 6 deg to Nova Cas 1995 24, evening 2 deg southwest of M76(12.0 mag, 4.8') 26-27 10 deg to Andromeda Galaxy M31 31, evening 3 deg to galaxy M33

103P/Hartley 2 [Finding Chart] 103P/Hartley 2 has been brightening as 19 mag in May, 17-19 mag in June, 16.5-18.5 mag in July, 13-15.5 mag in August and 12-15 mag in September and October, 10 -> 9 mag in November, and reached to the peak in December as 9 -> 8 mag. It has passed the perihelion on Dec. 21 and turns to fade out after this. But it still keeps 9 -> 10 mag this month and is a good target for visual observers. The comet moves eastwards between Pisces and Cetus. It passes about 8 deg south of Saturn. It locates in the southwest at dusk, the altitude is about 45 deg. The situation keeps until April, while the comet becomes so faint as 15 mag. Then it becomes too low at dusk in mid May as 17 mag. It passes about 30 arcmin south of 65P/Gunn on Jan. 12. Unfortunately 65P/Gunn is so faint as 16 mag. On Feb 3 and 4, it passes about 3 deg north of Mira, just after the peak in January.

C/1997 T1 ( Utsunomiya ) [Finding Chart] This is a new comet discovered by Syogo Utsunomiya in Kumamoto, Japan, as 10.5 mag on Oct. 3. The comet was discovered just when it had brightened rapidly as it approached to the earth. It was observed as 9 mag from mid October to mid December. It had been in the northwest at dusk a while but moved southwards fast and became too low to see in mid December. At the beginning of 1998, the comet is at conjunction with the sun. It moves southwards in Serpens (tail) towards Scutum. After mid January it appears again at dawn. The altitude at the beginning of the morning glow becomes higher than 10 deg after Jan. 20. However, the Southern observers cannot observed it yet. The comet has passed the perihelion on Dec. 10 and it will go fainter after this. It is about 11.5 mag in late January. The comet was observed about 1 mag brighter than expected in December. But because of the 1-month blank, the magnitude is rather uncertain when it appears at dawn. It closes to an open cluster M11 down to 2.2 deg on Feb. 23.

C/1997 J2 ( Meunier-Dupouy ) [Finding Chart] A new comet discovered as 14 mag on May 7, 1997. It was discovered while tracing another new comet C/1997 J1 ( Mueller ) discovered four days before. C/1997 J2 was found in the field of C/1997 J1 by chance. The both had quite same brightness at that time. It passes the perihelion on Mar. 10 but only reaches to 3 AU from the sun. Because of the large distance, the light curve is very gentle. It has brightened steadily, 13 mag in spring and 12 mag in summer and autumn. It was observed visually as an 11-mag small object visually after November. It moves eastwards in the center of Cygnus. Though it becomes at conjunction with the sun, the Northern people can observe it always because of the high declination as +40 -> +35 deg. Until Jan. 17, it locates in the northwest while the altitude becomes lower as 24 -> 15 deg. The morning condition becomes better after that. It locates in the northeast while the altitude becomes higher as 15 -> 18 deg. On the other hand, the Southern observers cannot see it at all. The comet is 11 mag. But it is in the Milky Way, so many faint stars around it, and the altitude is very low. So it is hard to observe it. It closes to M29 down to 2.4 deg on Jan. 28. It closes to the Veil Nebula NGC6992 down to about 4 deg on Feb. 15. After this, it will be observable as 11 mag for about one year. The ephemeris shows it keeps observable as 16 mag even in 2000.

78P/Gehrels 2 [Finding Chart] 78P/Gehrels 2 has already passed the perihelion on Aug. 7, 1997. But it keeps so bright as 12 mag for four months from August to November, because it was getting closer to the earth until last month. Visual observers reported as 11 mag in autumn and winter, so the comet has not yet shown to fade out still now. The comet had been too close to the sun before the perihelion passage, but it seemed to brighten rapidly during the blank. Therefore I predicted the comet fades out after perihelion passage as rapidly as before, and made the ephemeris depending on it. However the comet kept the brightness a while, so here I modified the ephemeris as the comet fades out slowly after this. It is still in the foot of Gemini this month and moves towards the arm of Orion. It locates overhead before midnight. It keeps as bright as 12 mag. It will begin to go fainter next month as it goes far away from both the sun and the earth. It becomes too low in May when it reaches to 15 mag.

104P/Kowal 2 [Finding Chart] 104P/Kowal 2, which passes the perihelion on Mar. 2, has been well brightening as 19 mag in May, 18 mag in June, 17.5 mag in July, 16.5 -> 15.5 mag in August, 15 mag in September and October, 14.5 -> 13.5 mag in November and reached to 13 mag in December. The magnitude equation of this period is: m1 = 9.5 + 5 log d + 15.0 log r This is about 1 mag brighter than prediction and implies the comet will reach to 12 mag in this winter and spring. It moves eastwards in the western Pisces this month. It locates high in the southwest at dusk as 13 mag. This comet will keep in the evening sky until May. The comet closes to P/1997 V1 ( Larsen ) in late January, about 2 deg south of it, but Comet Larsen is so faint as 17 mag.

43P/Wolf-Harrington [Finding Chart] 43P/Wolf-Harrington was bright in 1997, 13 mag in summer and 12 mag in autumn. Though the perihelion passage was on Sept. 29, the comet was getting closer to the earth after that. So it has been about 12-13 mag a while. It is still 13 mag and observable even visually. It moves southwards in the center of Hydra this month. It locates in the south after midnight at 35 deg high. The ghost of Jupiter NGC3242 is close all through this month. The closest approach is on Jan. 8, about 2.3 deg. It becomes at opposition next month. It begins to go far away from both the sun and the earth, so the comet will fades out rapidly. When it becomes low in the west in early summer, it will reach to 19 mag.

C/1997 D1 ( Mueller ) [Finding Chart] C/1997 D1 ( Mueller ) is a new comet discovered by Jean Mueller as 16 mag on a plate of the second Palomar Sky Survey taken on Feb. 17, 1997. It was observed until June as 13-14 mag, a bit brighter actually. After the conjunction with the sun in summer, it appeared again at dawn in September. Though it has already passed the perihelion on Oct. 11, the comet has been coming close to the earth. So the peak was from late November to early December. The comet was predicted to reach to 11 mag at that time. However, it was observed much fainter than expected. Some visual observers reported as 11 mag only in early November. But all other visual reports say about 12-13 mag. CCD observers reported as 14 mag. These reports imply that the comet did not become active when it closed to the sun. Therefore I modified the ephemeris as the comet is much fainter, which shows it is 13 -> 14 mag this month while going far away from the sun and the earth. The comet moves westwards in the northern part of Eridanus this month. It has been moving drastically on the celestial globe so far. But the motion becomes slow now. It locates in the south at dusk. In late February it becomes very low in the evening western sky. But the perihelion distance is so large as 2.2 AU. So it can be observable again in next summer as 16 mag, though it locates low in the south and hard to observe in the Northern Hemisphere.

29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 1 [Finding Chart] 29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 1 is now around the aphelion, but the orbit is almost a circle and looks as a same magnitude for years. It is still active and sometimes happens a small outburst. It bursted out and reached to 11 mag in early February and late May in 1997. However the outburst continues for only a few days. Though the total magnitude keeps always 13 mag, the image is so diffused and as hard to observe as 16-17 mag comets. The comet appeared again at dawn last month. It has already bursted out on Nov. 24, but it turned to be diffused on Dec. 3. It locates in the tail of Hydra, south of Spica, and in the south at dawn, about 35 deg high.

Faint Comets

C/1997 J1 ( Mueller ) [Finding Chart] , a new comet discovered by Jean Mueller on a plate of the second Palomar Sky Survey taken on May 3, was observed a bit brighter, as 12-14 mag. The comet has passed the perihelion on the discovery day and only to get fainter. But because the perihelion distance is large as 2.3 AU, it was observed bright as 14-16 mag from October and December. It moves southwestwards in the western part of Gemini. It locates overhead in early January, however, it becomes an evening object in late January. It closes to P/1996 R2 ( Lagerkvist ) within 30 arcmin from Feb. 9 to 11. But Comet Lagerkvist is so faint, probably fainter than 19 mag. We can observe this comet ( Mueller ) until spring when it reaches to 17 mag. After that, it will appear again at dawn in next autumn as 19 mag.

69P/Taylor [Finding Chart] was finally observed in October as 18.9 mag. Though it seemed to reach only to 17 mag at best in December, the comet brightened rapidly as 18 mag in November, 16 mag in early December and 15 mag in late December. Here I modify the magnitude prediction as 2 mag brighter than before. It moves northwards in Cancer towards the north of Gemini's heads. It locates overhead at midnight this month. The perihelion passage was on Dec. 12 and the peak is just now. It is about 15 mag.

A new comet discovered as 18 mag by Joe Montani on Apr. 12, only three days after the discovery of P/1997 G1 ( Montani ), C/1997 G2 ( Montani ) [Finding Chart] had been observed as 17 mag until July. It was at conjunction after that, but it appears again after this. The comet is predicted to be bright as 15-16 mag now. However the comet locates in the southern sky and the Northern observers cannot see it. The perihelion passage is on Apr. 16 and the brightness reaches to 14 mag from March to July. Unfortunately the declination is about -70 deg, so the Northern people cannot observe it at all. It moves southeastwards in Ara, south of Scorpius. It closes to an open cluster NGC6397(5.6 mag, 26') on Jan. 27.

When 128P/Shoemaker-Holt 1 [Finding Chart] was recovered in September 1996 as 20.7 mag, the nucleus was split into two pieces. In last year, it has brightened much more drastically than expected, 18 mag in August, 17 mag in September, 16 mag in October, and reached to 15 mag in late November. A visual observer reported it as 14-15 mag. The magnitude equation for this rapid brightening is: m1 = -92.5 + 5 log d + 220 log r This is quite unusual. Maybe this is the result of the nucleus splitting. It has already passed the perihelion on Nov. 20 and fades out as 15.5 -> 16 mag this month. It is still in the center of Taurus and locates overhead before midnight.

95P/(2060) Chiron [Finding Chart] , whose period is about 50 years and which is also registered as an asteroid (2060), appears again at dawn. It has passed the perihelion in 1996 February. But the perihelion distance is so large and the magnitude will never change so much for more several years. The image is stellar and not so interesting. But it was observed as a bit fainter than expected in the former half of the last year. In addition, some say that the absolute magnitude varies erratically. It locates in Libra, near alpha-Lib, in the southeast at dawn. It still keeps 16 mag this month.

The 7th return of D/1952 B1 ( Harrington-Wilson ) [Finding Chart] , a lost comet since the discovery in 1952, is predicted in this April. This comet was discovered in course of the Palomar Sky Survey with 1.22-m schmidt camera in 1952 January. Then it closed to Jupiter down to 0.6 AU and the orbit has become quite uncertain. The ephemeris in this article depends on the orbital elements calculated by Kenji Muraoka from only 7 observations. It is probably impossible to recover it just as the ephemeris predicts. But the inclination is about 18 deg, which means the comet always locates near the ecliptic. The magnitude reaches 16 mag at best, so maybe recovered my chance.

88P/Howell [Finding Chart] will pass the perihelion on Sept. 27. It has been observable at dawn since November but not been detected in this return yet. It locates in Virgo, north of Spica, and in the south at dawn this month. It is expected to brighten as 17 -& 16 mag, enough to catch with a CCD camera. So the comet will be detected soon. However, some say that this comet tends to become bright after perihelion passage. In this case, the current brightness is much fainter than expected. Anyway, it is expected to be 11 mag in summer and autumn.

65P/Gunn [Finding Chart] has already passed the perihelion on July 24, 1996. Because the eccentricity is small and the orbit is like a circle, it still keeps 16 mag. It was observed as 13-17 mag from July to December in 1997. Visual observers reported the comet was much brighter than expected in summer and autumn. It is still in the tail of Cetus, southwest of Saturn. It closes to 103P/Hartley 2 within 30 arcmin on Jan. 12. It becomes low in the evening sky and we cannot observe it for a while after next month. This comet is as bright as 18 mag even at the aphelion and observable all around the orbit.

C/1996 J1 ( Evans-Drinkwater ) [Finding Chart] has passed the perihelion about one year before, on Dec. 30, 1996. In early May in 1997, J. Kobayashi found that the comet was split into two nuclei, 10 mag (nucleus A) and 13 mag (B). Then the nucleus A faded out rapidly and reached to 16 mag in early July, then 17.5-18 mag in August. After that the fading became gentle. It was observed as 18.7 mag on Nov. 23. The light curve of the nucleus A is expressed as: m1 = -0.2 + 5 log d + 27.6 log r On the other hand, the nucleus B has been fading gradually, 14.7 mag in early July and kept 15 mag still in December. The light curve of the nucleus B is: m1 = 9.0 + 5 log d + 6.6 log r Here the ephemeris depends on the nucleus B. Though it reaches to almost 5 AU from the sun, it still keeps 16 mag. It locates in Triangulum and overhead at dusk this month.

132P/Helin-Roman-Alu 2 [Finding Chart] was recovered on July 13, 1997, as 19.5 mag, about 2 mag fainter than expected. Then it brightened rapidly as 17.5 mag in early September, 16.5 mag in late September, and 15.5-16 mag in October and November. A visual observer reported it as 14-15 mag. However it has already passed the perihelion on Nov. 10. It fades out as 16 -> 17 mag in this month. It moves eastwards in the head of Cetus, into Taurus next month. It locates high in the evening sky.

48P/Johnson [Finding Chart] had brightened rapidly in last year as 18.5 -> 17 mag in May, 15.5 mag in late June and reached to 13.5 mag visually and 15 mag with CCD in summer, much brighter than expected. Though the perihelion passage was on Oct. 31, the peak of the brightness was summer, so it turned to fade out and was observed as 16 mag in autumn. It moves eastwards in Aquarius this month. It closes to the Helix Nebula NGC7293 down to 2 deg on Jan. 11. The brightness is about 16 mag. However it is very low at dusk, the altitude at the end of the evening glow is 19 -> 9 deg. After conjunction with the sun, we can observe it again in summer as 18.5 mag.

A new periodic comet P/1997 V1 ( Larsen ) [Finding Chart] discovered by Jeff Larsen with the Spacewatch telescope at Kitt Peak on Nov. 3 as 16.6 mag, was observed a bit brighter, as 15.5-16 mag. It has already passed the perihelion on Aug. 16 and will never be brighter after this. But the perihelion distance is large as 3.3AU and the eccentricity is small as 0.33, it can be observed for a while. It locates in the western Pisces and high in the evening sky this month. The brightness is about 17 mag. In late January 104P/Kowal 2 closes to this comet. It becomes too low to observe next month but it appears again at dawn in autumn as 17 mag.

129P/Shoemaker-Levy 3 [Finding Chart] , which passes the perihelion on Mar. 4, is at the peak in this winter. It was observed as 17 mag in autumn. It is at opposition in Gemini and locates overhead at midnight. It is still 17 mag. It has already taken more than one year since the comet was recovered in 1996 October. Because the eccentricity is 0.25, almost a circle, it will keep 18.5 mag even at the opposition in 1999 spring. So the comet will be observed for a long time.

A new comet C/1997 BA6 ( Spacewatch ) [Finding Chart] , discovered on Jan. 31, 1997, as 19.4 mag, was originally reported as an asteroid. But the current images is cometary with a faint coma. It was observed as 18 mag in November and December. It will pass the perihelion in November 1999 and is expected to be bright as 14 mag. However it locates near the South Pole around the perihelion passage and cannot be observed in the Northern Hemisphere. Now it is so far as nearly 7 AU from the sun and keeps faint for a while. It locates about 4 deg north of alpha-Hya and high in the south after midnight. The brightness is about 17 mag. Northern observers can trace this comet until May when it reaches to 17 mag. But it goes into the southern sky after that and we in the Northern Hemisphere cannot observe it until 2000 autumn.

C/1997 O1 ( Tilbrook ) [Finding Chart] , discovered as 10 mag on July 22, 1997, appeared again at dawn last month. It was observed as 15.3 mag on Dec. 4, which was a bit brighter than expected, however the comet was so diffused. It will fade out as 17.5 -> 18.5 mag this month, but maybe much fainter actually. Anyway the observation is so hard because of the diffusion. It moves northwards from Corona Borealis to the foot of Hercules. The Southern observers cannot see it now. It locates high in the east at dawn in the Northern Hemisphere.

22P/Kopff [Finding Chart] was observed by T. Oribe and A. Sugie on Nov. 2 and 3 as 17 mag, about 3 mag brighter than expected. However no other observations were reported after that. The image was so diffused and very hard to observe in early November, which implies that the comet has already become 20 mag or fainter, as the original. It locates in the body of Taurus, high in the evening sky, but it is extremely hard to observe it. On Dec. 3, 1996, the comet was split into 3 nuclei or more at the ESO. The comet had been observed until 1997 February, while it faded out gradually and reached to 16 mag. Therefore, perhaps the comet bursted out around the conjunction with the sun. The splitting of the nucleus may caused the outburst.

A new asteroid 1997 CU26 [Finding Chart] , discovered as 18 mag on Feb. 15, 1997, is moving on an orbit with 13 AU perihelion distance, farther than Saturn, and 60-year period. It means this object is a new member of Centaur asteroids like 95P/Chiron, etc. The perihelion date is 2004 and we will be able to observe it as about 18 mag for more than 20 years. Maybe someone detect the coma of this object and it turns to be a comet. It locates still in the southeastern part of Cancer, near by alpha-Cnc or a globular cluster M67, high in the south after midnight.

An asteroid (5145) Pholus [Finding Chart] , which was discovered on Jan. 9, 1992 as 17 mag, was quite a rare object. The orbital elements show that it moves on an orbit with 8.7 AU perihelion distance and 90 year period. Because that is very similar to that of 95P/Chiron, which had been regarded as an asteroid for a long time and the true character is a comet, maybe this object is also a comet. But no coma was detected by the following observations. This object is very famous for its extreme red color. Although 6 years have already passed since the perihelion date, the brightness will not change so much and it will be observable for more several years after this because of the large distance from the sun. It locates still in southwest of Arcturus, high in the south at dawn as 18 mag.

C/1997 A1 ( NEAT ) [Finding Chart] , discovered on Jan. 10, 1997, as 18.6 mag, locates high in the evening northwestern sky. It kept the stable brightness all though the last year but it turns to go fades out rapidly after this. It will be 18 -> 19 mag. It locates in Andromeda this month and the Southern people cannot observe it. In late January it closes to the Andromeda Galaxy M31. It passes in front of it in early February so maybe becomes hard to observe.

A new asteroid 1997 MD10 [Finding Chart] , discovered as 18.8 mag on June 29, 1997, is moving on an orbit like a comet with 1.5 AU perihelion distance and 128-year period. However the image of this object is completely stellar. It passed the perihelion on Nov. 10 and closed to the sun down to 1.5 AU at that time, but no coma was observed. It moves northeastwards fast, from Cygnus, across Lacerta, to Andromeda, and locates in the northwest at dusk as 18 mag. It is not observable in the Southern Hemisphere.

74P/Smirnova-Chernykh [Finding Chart] is now around the aphelion and in its faintest period as 18 mag. It will brighten slowly for the next perihelion in 2001. It is between Pisces and Cetus now, just south of Saturn, and locates in the southwest at dusk.

A new periodic comet P/1996 R2 ( Lagerkvist ) [Finding Chart] , discovered in 1996 September, should have appeared again at dawn since last summer but not yet observed. It should be much fainter than expected. It locates between Taurus and Gemini, overhead in the evening. The ephemeris says the comet is still 18 mag, but must be much fainter actually. It is about 2 deg north of an open cluster M35 in early January. It closes to C/1997 J1 ( Mueller ) within 30 arcmin from Feb. 9 to 11.

131P/Mueller 2 [Finding Chart] was recovered in late June and early July by A. Sugie and A. Nakamura as 18.9 and 19.9 mag. Although the brightness was about 2.5 mag fainter than expected, it was observed a bit brighter after that and reached to 17 mag at best. It will fades gradually as 18.5 -> 19 mag this month. It is at the joint of Pisces and high in the southwest at dusk.

C/1997 L1 ( Xinglong ) [Finding Chart] , discovered as 17 mag on June 3, 1997, at the Xinglong station of BAO, has been too close to observe. It appears again at dawn now. It has already passed the perihelion more than one year ago, in 1996 November. But because the perihelion distance is so large as 4.9 AU, the comet is fading very slowly. It still keeps about 18 mag now, though the distance from the sun is almost 6 AU. It moves northwards in Ophiucus.

85P/Boethin [Finding Chart] should have passed the perihelion on Apr. 17, 1997. The condition of this return is worst and we cannot see it at all because the comet has been too close to the sun, although it should have reached 9.5 mag at the perihelion passage. Before the perihelion, it was not observed in summer 1996 when it has been 18-19 mag at opposition. After perihelion the comet appeared again at dawn in 1997 November but not yet observed. So this return of the comet has not been registered yet. It locates at the hind foot of Leo. Though it becomes high in the south after midnight, the brightness is so faint as 18 or 19 mag. It will get much fainter after this. If no observations succeed soon, it will be missed in this return.

C/1996 P2 ( Russell-Watson ) [Finding Chart] , discovered on Aug. 10, 1996 as 13 mag, has already passed the perihelion on Mar. 1, 1996, but it is observable still now. It was observed as 17 mag in November. Because the perihelion distance is large, it is going faint slowly. It will be 19 mag this month. It locates still in the northern part of Eridanus, near by eta-Eri, in the south at dusk.

62P/Tsuchinshan 1 [Finding Chart] , which passes the perihelion on Apr. 19, was observed on Nov. 3 at Saji observatory for the first time in this return. Although it was expected as 18 mag at that time, the comet was actually much fainter. It was stellar and only 20.3 mag. Therefore it reaches only to 18.5 mag at best in March and April in this return. It locates at the joint of Pisces and high in the evening sky, but very faint as 19 mag.

A new periodic comet P/1997 G1 ( Montani ) [Finding Chart] discovered on Apr. 9, 1997, as 19 mag appeared again at dawn in November. It was observed in early December as 18.8 mag as expected. The comet is south of Leo and locates high in the south after midnight this month. Though it has already passed the perihelion in last April, it will not fade out rapidly because of the large perihelion distance as 4 AU.

80P/Peters-Hartley [Finding Chart] , which will pass the perihelion on Aug. 11, is getting brighter now, as 20 -> 19 mag. It moves southwards in Antlia, south of the center of Hydra, this month. It locates very low in the south, the altitude is only 29 -> 22 deg in Japan, even at the meridian transit after midnight. Therefore it is hard to observe it. However the comet locates highest now, and the altitude will never higher than 25 deg after next month. In this return the comet will reach to 16 mag in the evening before the perihelion passage, but the condition is bad and it will be seldom observed. Because it keeps low in the south, maybe nobody observe it until April when the comet reaches to 17 mag.

A new periodic comet P/1997 T3 [Finding Chart] , discovered on Oct. 5 as 18.9 mag in course of the Uppsala-DLR Trojan Survey program, seems not to have its own name forever. This object is asteroidal, even a large telescope can detect only the very faint tail and cannot detect the coma. The situation is very similar to that of 133P/Elst-Pizarro, which is also registered as an asteroid (7968). However, following observations detected the coma and P/1997 T3 seemed more cometary. It locates just east of Saturn, in the southwest at dusk.

133P/(7968) Elst-Pizarro [Finding Chart] , which has an orbit of a main-belt asteroid and registered both as a periodic comet and an asteroid, is in Aries and locates overhead in the evening. This object can be observed all around the orbit. But now it is around the aphelion and so faint as 20 mag. Only at the discovery the long tail was detected, but no other observations neither before nor after that showed it cometary. Who can say someday the object becomes cometary again or not?

The condition of 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup [Finding Chart] in this return was worst. Though it was observed as 20.8 mag in 1997 January, it had been too close to the sun all around the perihelion passage. Only in last November there was a little chance to see the comet. But the comet located very low in the west at dusk, the altitude reached only to 14 deg at the end of the evening glow (at latitude +35 deg). In addition, the comet was expected to be so faint as 18 mag at that time. Therefore nobody seemed to be able to observe it really. However, Takuo Kojima succeeded to observe it on Oct. 27 under such a bad condition. He reported the comet was 16.5 mag. It is now too close to the sun again and we cannot observe it.

37P/Forbes [Finding Chart] , which passes the perihelion in 1999 May, will be observed soon. Though it is so faint as 20 mag now, it locates around the forefoot of Leo, high in the south after midnight. The comet has appeared 8 times since 1929. It will brighten as 13 mag at best at the perihelion passage and will be observed visually.

D/1977 C1 ( Skiff-Kosai ) [Finding Chart] , one of the lost comets, has already missed twice. Its third return is predicted as in 1999 March. It reaches only to 17 mag at best, but the the eccentricity is 0.27, almost a circle, and now it is time to be brighter than 20 mag. This comet was discovered by Skiff in 1986 September on the pictures taken in 1977 February, about 10 years before. At the same time, this comet was linked to an asteroid 1977 DV3 discovered by Kosai in 1977 February and March. Then it was registered as a periodic comet Skiff-Kosai. However, because there are only a few observations and the discovery was about 10 years after the pictures were taken, the comet was not recovered in 1991 and became lost. The ephemeris in this article depends on the orbital elements calculated by Kenji Muraoka from only 8 observations. Though the comet will brighten gradually after this, it is probably impossible to recover it just as the ephemeris predicts. But the inclination is small and the comet always locates near the ecliptic. Now is the CCD generation. So it may be recovered my chance in course of asteroid survey.

A new periodic comet discovered in 1992 April, P/1992 G2 ( Shoemaker-Levy 8 ) [Finding Chart] is in its first return. Though the perihelion passage is in 1999 December, about two years ahead, the eccentricity is 0.29 and the orbit is rather circular, so it will be recovered soon. It is still extremely faint as 20 mag now but the positional condition is very good in this winter. It becomes at opposition in Gemini and locates high in the south at midnight.

134P/Kowal-Vavrova [Finding Chart] in its first return was recovered on Dec. 5 at Kitt Peak. However the brightness is 20.8-21.8 mag, about 2-3 mag fainter than expected. The comet looked stellar next day and the magnitude m2 was 22.3. Though the perihelion passage is in 1998 November, it is at conjunction with the sun and impossible to observe around the perihelion passage. In fact, it reaches only to 19.5 mag at best in 1999 spring, so few observations will be reported.

Ephemeris Table

Best time and the azimuth, altitude (A,h) are at lat. +35 deg in the Northern Hemisphere.

C/1995 O1 ( Hale-Bopp ) m1 = -1.4 + 5 log d + 10.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 6 25.11 -64 19.1 3.883 3.716 92 7.3 0:00 ( 0, -9) 1998- 1- 7 6 0.06 -64 22.7 3.990 3.831 92 7.5 22:52 ( 0, -9) 1998- 1-17 5 38.10 -63 47.3 4.095 3.953 91 7.7 21:51 ( 0, -9) 1998- 1-27 5 20.60 -62 42.6 4.200 4.081 90 7.9 20:54 ( 0, -8) 1998- 2- 6 5 7.95 -61 18.9 4.304 4.214 88 8.1 20:02 ( 0, -6)

55P/Tempel-Tuttle m1 = 9.0 + 5 log d + 20.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 12 37.88 27 3.3 1.390 0.851 98 11.5 5:36 (313, 79) 1997-12-29 12 37.68 28 7.5 1.379 0.817 99 11.4 5:36 (313, 80) 1997-12-30 12 37.40 29 17.5 1.368 0.784 100 11.2 5:37 (313, 82) 1997-12-31 12 37.03 30 34.1 1.358 0.751 102 11.0 5:37 (312, 84) 1998- 1- 1 12 36.54 31 58.0 1.348 0.718 103 10.9 5:37 (308, 85) 1998- 1- 2 12 35.91 33 30.2 1.337 0.685 105 10.7 5:37 (298, 87) 1998- 1- 3 12 35.13 35 11.8 1.327 0.653 106 10.5 5:38 (262, 88) 1998- 1- 4 12 34.15 37 3.9 1.317 0.622 108 10.4 5:38 (195, 88) 1998- 1- 5 12 32.93 39 8.0 1.307 0.591 109 10.2 5:35 (180, 86) 1998- 1- 6 12 31.40 41 25.7 1.297 0.562 111 10.0 5:30 (180, 84) 1998- 1- 7 12 29.47 43 58.5 1.287 0.533 112 9.8 5:24 (180, 81) 1998- 1- 8 12 27.03 46 48.5 1.277 0.505 114 9.6 5:18 (180, 78) 1998- 1- 9 12 23.88 49 57.4 1.267 0.479 115 9.5 5:11 (180, 75) 1998- 1-10 12 19.73 53 27.1 1.257 0.454 117 9.3 5:03 (180, 72) 1998- 1-11 12 14.12 57 18.9 1.248 0.432 118 9.1 4:53 (180, 68) 1998- 1-12 12 6.20 61 33.3 1.238 0.412 119 8.9 4:41 (180, 63) 1998- 1-13 11 54.42 66 9.5 1.229 0.394 119 8.8 4:25 (180, 59) 1998- 1-14 11 35.42 71 3.4 1.219 0.379 120 8.6 4:03 (180, 54) 1998- 1-15 11 0.89 76 3.8 1.210 0.368 119 8.5 3:24 (180, 49) 1998- 1-16 9 46.97 80 38.3 1.201 0.360 119 8.4 2:06 (180, 44) 1998- 1-17 7 6.03 82 58.7 1.192 0.357 117 8.3 23:18 (180, 42) 1998- 1-18 4 19.43 80 49.2 1.183 0.357 115 8.2 20:28 (180, 44) 1998- 1-19 3 1.29 76 10.1 1.174 0.361 113 8.2 19:06 (180, 49) 1998- 1-20 2 25.14 70 56.9 1.166 0.369 110 8.2 18:44 (178, 54) 1998- 1-21 2 5.41 65 45.9 1.157 0.381 107 8.2 18:45 (172, 59) 1998- 1-22 1 53.22 60 50.2 1.149 0.396 104 8.2 18:45 (164, 62) 1998- 1-23 1 45.03 56 15.4 1.140 0.413 101 8.2 18:46 (156, 65) 1998- 1-24 1 39.19 52 3.6 1.132 0.434 98 8.3 18:47 (146, 67) 1998- 1-25 1 34.85 48 14.8 1.124 0.456 95 8.3 18:48 (135, 68) 1998- 1-26 1 31.52 44 48.1 1.117 0.480 92 8.4 18:49 (125, 69) 1998- 1-27 1 28.90 41 41.7 1.109 0.506 90 8.4 18:50 (116, 68) 1998- 1-28 1 26.79 38 53.8 1.101 0.533 87 8.5 18:51 (108, 67) 1998- 1-29 1 25.06 36 22.5 1.094 0.561 85 8.5 18:52 (102, 66) 1998- 1-30 1 23.63 34 5.9 1.087 0.589 83 8.6 18:52 ( 97, 64) 1998- 1-31 1 22.43 32 2.4 1.080 0.619 81 8.6 18:53 ( 93, 62) 1998- 2- 1 1 21.42 30 10.3 1.073 0.649 79 8.7 18:54 ( 90, 60) 1998- 2- 2 1 20.55 28 28.4 1.067 0.680 77 8.7 18:55 ( 88, 59) 1998- 2- 3 1 19.80 26 55.5 1.060 0.711 75 8.8 18:56 ( 86, 57) 1998- 2- 4 1 19.15 25 30.4 1.054 0.742 73 8.8 18:57 ( 85, 55) 1998- 2- 5 1 18.58 24 12.4 1.048 0.773 71 8.8 18:58 ( 84, 54) 1998- 2- 6 1 18.08 23 0.6 1.042 0.805 70 8.9 18:59 ( 83, 52)

103P/Hartley 2 m1 = 9.0 + 5 log d + 20.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 23 9.39 -7 58.3 1.035 0.832 68 8.9 18:26 ( 35, 40) 1998- 1- 7 0 0.17 -6 28.6 1.056 0.820 71 9.0 18:33 ( 35, 42) 1998- 1-17 0 52.37 -4 30.5 1.095 0.827 73 9.4 18:41 ( 35, 45) 1998- 1-27 1 44.01 -2 13.1 1.148 0.858 76 9.9 18:50 ( 35, 47) 1998- 2- 6 2 33.34 0 10.9 1.213 0.912 79 10.5 18:59 ( 36, 49)

C/1997 T1 ( Utsunomiya ) m1 = 8.0 + 5 log d + 10.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 18 47.99 5 8.3 1.385 2.162 28 11.1 18:26 ( 95, 2) 1998- 1- 7 18 48.98 2 51.7 1.420 2.238 25 11.3 5:38 (267, 1) 1998- 1-17 18 49.72 0 55.0 1.468 2.276 26 11.5 5:38 (274, 7) 1998- 1-27 18 49.89 -0 47.9 1.528 2.276 31 11.6 5:35 (281, 14) 1998- 2- 6 18 49.08 -2 22.0 1.599 2.240 38 11.8 5:29 (288, 19)

C/1997 J2 ( Meunier-Dupouy ) m1 = 3.7 + 5 log d + 10.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 19 12.86 41 43.2 3.133 3.404 65 11.3 18:26 (124, 26) 1998- 1- 7 19 35.60 39 44.9 3.112 3.443 62 11.3 18:33 (125, 21) 1998- 1-17 19 56.86 37 59.8 3.094 3.487 58 11.3 18:41 (126, 15) 1998- 1-27 20 16.68 36 28.8 3.080 3.533 55 11.3 5:35 (237, 17) 1998- 2- 6 20 35.13 35 11.9 3.068 3.576 51 11.3 5:29 (240, 19)

78P/Gehrels 2 m1 = 8.2 + 5 log d + 10.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 6 36.27 13 8.0 2.307 1.333 169 12.5 0:11 ( 0, 68) 1998- 1- 7 6 28.10 13 12.6 2.346 1.380 166 12.6 23:20 ( 0, 68) 1998- 1-17 6 21.40 13 27.0 2.386 1.451 156 12.8 22:34 ( 0, 68) 1998- 1-27 6 17.01 13 48.6 2.427 1.547 146 13.0 21:50 ( 0, 69) 1998- 2- 6 6 15.37 14 14.6 2.470 1.663 135 13.2 21:09 ( 0, 69)

104P/Kowal 2 m1 = 9.5 + 5 log d + 15.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 23 29.42 6 45.5 1.563 1.408 79 13.2 18:26 ( 40, 56) 1998- 1- 7 23 53.50 7 11.6 1.518 1.439 74 13.0 18:33 ( 48, 53) 1998- 1-17 0 19.65 7 53.2 1.479 1.470 71 12.9 18:41 ( 55, 50) 1998- 1-27 0 47.68 8 46.5 1.447 1.501 67 12.8 18:50 ( 61, 47) 1998- 2- 6 1 17.39 9 47.4 1.422 1.533 64 12.7 18:59 ( 67, 44)

43P/Wolf-Harrington m1 = 7.5 + 5 log d + 20.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 10 15.05 -14 58.1 1.813 1.192 112 13.0 3:49 ( 0, 40) 1998- 1- 7 10 14.83 -17 47.0 1.860 1.164 119 13.2 3:10 ( 0, 37) 1998- 1-17 10 10.94 -19 58.7 1.910 1.146 127 13.4 2:27 ( 0, 35) 1998- 1-27 10 3.91 -21 25.1 1.963 1.141 134 13.6 1:40 ( 0, 34) 1998- 2- 6 9 54.81 -22 0.4 2.017 1.152 141 13.9 0:52 ( 0, 33)

C/1997 D1 ( Mueller ) m1 = 10.0 + 5 log d + 5.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 3 50.31 -11 39.6 2.415 1.681 128 13.0 21:22 ( 0, 43) 1998- 1- 7 3 21.74 -12 54.5 2.458 1.894 113 13.3 20:14 ( 0, 42) 1998- 1-17 3 1.60 -13 23.8 2.506 2.135 100 13.6 19:14 ( 0, 42) 1998- 1-27 2 48.12 -13 26.5 2.557 2.389 88 13.9 18:50 ( 9, 41) 1998- 2- 6 2 39.66 -13 15.1 2.611 2.642 77 14.2 18:59 ( 26, 38)

29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 1 m1 = 4.0 + 5 log d + 7.5 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 13 31.73 -18 27.2 6.260 6.552 68 14.1 5:36 (335, 32) 1998- 1- 7 13 35.46 -19 3.7 6.258 6.396 77 14.0 5:38 (345, 35) 1998- 1-17 13 38.32 -19 36.4 6.257 6.234 86 13.9 5:38 (356, 35) 1998- 1-27 13 40.21 -20 4.4 6.256 6.071 96 13.9 5:16 ( 0, 35) 1998- 2- 6 13 41.06 -20 27.3 6.255 5.911 105 13.8 4:37 ( 0, 35)

C/1997 J1 ( Mueller ) m1 = 7.5 + 5 log d + 10.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 7 13.05 34 28.6 3.454 2.495 165 14.9 0:48 ( 0, 89) 1998- 1- 7 6 46.71 32 58.3 3.530 2.562 168 15.0 23:38 ( 0, 88) 1998- 1-17 6 23.42 31 9.5 3.606 2.680 157 15.2 22:36 ( 0, 86) 1998- 1-27 6 4.24 29 14.1 3.683 2.843 143 15.4 21:37 ( 0, 84) 1998- 2- 6 5 49.47 27 22.1 3.760 3.044 130 15.7 20:43 ( 0, 82)

69P/Taylor m1 = 6.5 + 5 log d + 30.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 8 30.63 20 29.2 1.952 1.031 151 15.3 2:05 ( 0, 75) 1998- 1- 7 8 27.71 23 47.5 1.960 1.000 162 15.3 1:23 ( 0, 79) 1998- 1-17 8 22.46 27 12.6 1.971 0.993 171 15.3 0:38 ( 0, 82) 1998- 1-27 8 16.17 30 24.5 1.985 1.013 167 15.5 23:49 ( 0, 85) 1998- 2- 6 8 10.48 33 5.8 2.003 1.058 156 15.7 23:04 ( 0, 88)

C/1997 G2 ( Montani ) m1 = 5.0 + 5 log d + 15.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 16 42.20 -46 34.8 3.263 4.061 31 15.7 5:36 (318,-13) 1998- 1- 7 16 59.60 -49 1.3 3.233 3.960 37 15.6 5:38 (323,-11) 1998- 1-17 17 18.44 -51 33.8 3.205 3.851 43 15.5 5:38 (327,-11) 1998- 1-27 17 39.03 -54 12.2 3.180 3.735 49 15.4 5:35 (331,-11) 1998- 2- 6 18 1.73 -56 56.2 3.158 3.616 55 15.3 5:29 (334,-12)

128P/Shoemaker-Holt 1 m1 = -0.8 + 5 log d + 30.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 4 3.96 16 55.8 3.054 2.191 145 15.5 21:35 ( 0, 72) 1998- 1- 7 4 1.48 16 47.4 3.059 2.283 135 15.6 20:53 ( 0, 72) 1998- 1-17 4 1.24 16 47.6 3.064 2.394 124 15.7 20:14 ( 0, 72) 1998- 1-27 4 3.24 16 55.8 3.070 2.519 115 15.8 19:37 ( 0, 72) 1998- 2- 6 4 7.40 17 10.6 3.078 2.655 106 16.0 19:01 ( 0, 72)

95P/Chiron m1 = 4.0 + 5 log d + 7.5 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 14 52.15 -15 12.5 8.808 9.390 51 15.9 5:36 (314, 26) 1998- 1- 7 14 56.21 -15 25.9 8.818 9.262 60 15.9 5:38 (322, 31) 1998- 1-17 14 59.74 -15 36.6 8.828 9.121 69 15.9 5:38 (331, 34) 1998- 1-27 15 2.67 -15 44.3 8.838 8.970 79 15.9 5:35 (341, 37) 1998- 2- 6 15 4.92 -15 48.8 8.848 8.815 88 15.8 5:29 (350, 39)

D/1952 B1 ( Harrington-Wilson ) m1 = 12.0 + 5 log d + 10.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 3 12.23 -7 11.2 2.082 1.372 123 15.9 20:44 ( 0, 48) 1998- 1- 7 3 12.71 -4 44.0 2.049 1.422 115 15.9 20:05 ( 0, 50) 1998- 1-17 3 16.51 -2 1.3 2.018 1.481 108 15.9 19:29 ( 0, 53) 1998- 1-27 3 23.47 0 50.0 1.991 1.549 101 15.9 18:57 ( 0, 56) 1998- 2- 6 3 33.38 3 44.4 1.966 1.621 94 16.0 18:59 ( 15, 58)

88P/Howell m1 = 8.0 + 5 log d + 15.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 13 13.29 -3 43.5 2.825 2.861 78 17.0 5:36 (333, 48) 1998- 1- 7 13 23.53 -4 38.2 2.766 2.664 85 16.8 5:38 (345, 49) 1998- 1-17 13 32.93 -5 25.8 2.706 2.467 93 16.4 5:38 (356, 50) 1998- 1-27 13 41.24 -6 5.2 2.646 2.272 101 16.1 5:17 ( 0, 49) 1998- 2- 6 13 48.15 -6 35.2 2.584 2.082 109 15.8 4:45 ( 0, 48)

65P/Gunn m1 = 7.7 + 5 log d + 10.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 0 19.20 -6 54.0 3.668 3.614 85 16.1 18:26 ( 13, 47) 1998- 1- 7 0 25.02 -5 45.4 3.696 3.790 77 16.3 18:33 ( 27, 46) 1998- 1-17 0 31.88 -4 33.1 3.724 3.961 68 16.4 18:41 ( 41, 42) 1998- 1-27 0 39.62 -3 18.3 3.751 4.126 61 16.5 18:50 ( 52, 37) 1998- 2- 6 0 48.09 -2 1.8 3.778 4.280 53 16.6 18:59 ( 62, 31)

C/1996 J1 ( Evans-Drinkwater ) m1 = 9.0 + 5 log d + 6.6 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 2 5.45 33 23.8 4.643 4.042 122 16.4 19:37 ( 0, 88) 1998- 1- 7 2 6.27 32 30.4 4.739 4.269 112 16.6 18:59 ( 0, 87) 1998- 1-17 2 8.62 31 47.2 4.834 4.507 103 16.8 18:41 ( 53, 85) 1998- 1-27 2 12.28 31 14.0 4.928 4.753 94 17.0 18:50 ( 79, 76) 1998- 2- 6 2 17.08 30 50.4 5.022 5.001 85 17.1 18:59 ( 87, 67)

132P/Helin-Roman-Alu 2 m1 = 11.5 + 5 log d + 15.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 2 20.47 5 45.7 1.959 1.292 118 16.4 19:52 ( 0, 61) 1998- 1- 7 2 31.34 6 58.0 1.980 1.402 111 16.7 19:24 ( 0, 62) 1998- 1-17 2 44.18 8 19.0 2.006 1.520 104 16.9 18:57 ( 0, 63) 1998- 1-27 2 58.66 9 44.4 2.034 1.646 98 17.2 18:50 ( 10, 64) 1998- 2- 6 3 14.50 11 10.7 2.066 1.778 92 17.5 18:59 ( 29, 64)

48P/Johnson m1 = 7.0 + 5 log d + 20.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 21 58.92 -20 54.2 2.341 2.869 48 16.7 18:26 ( 44, 20) 1998- 1- 7 22 18.54 -19 20.7 2.353 2.966 43 16.8 18:33 ( 50, 18) 1998- 1-17 22 38.09 -17 40.6 2.367 3.056 38 16.9 18:41 ( 56, 14) 1998- 1-27 22 57.52 -15 55.2 2.383 3.140 33 17.0 18:50 ( 62, 10) 1998- 2- 6 23 16.79 -14 6.0 2.401 3.218 28 17.1 18:59 ( 68, 6)

P/1997 V1 ( Larsen ) m1 = 9.0 + 5 log d + 10.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 0 29.58 9 41.7 3.365 3.145 94 16.8 18:26 ( 14, 64) 1998- 1- 7 0 37.45 9 51.8 3.377 3.300 85 16.9 18:33 ( 34, 61) 1998- 1-17 0 46.45 10 12.1 3.389 3.454 78 17.0 18:41 ( 49, 56) 1998- 1-27 0 56.43 10 41.0 3.403 3.606 70 17.1 18:50 ( 61, 50) 1998- 2- 6 1 7.24 11 16.9 3.417 3.752 62 17.2 18:59 ( 71, 43)

129P/Shoemaker-Levy 3 m1 = 11.0 + 5 log d + 10.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 7 55.69 22 38.5 2.838 1.895 159 16.9 1:30 ( 0, 78) 1998- 1- 7 7 48.20 22 42.1 2.832 1.856 171 16.9 0:44 ( 0, 78) 1998- 1-17 7 39.93 22 44.3 2.827 1.845 176 16.8 23:52 ( 0, 78) 1998- 1-27 7 31.92 22 43.2 2.823 1.863 164 16.9 23:05 ( 0, 78) 1998- 2- 6 7 25.19 22 37.8 2.821 1.909 152 16.9 22:19 ( 0, 78)

C/1997 BA6 ( Spacewatch ) m1 = 7.5 + 5 log d + 7.5 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 9 42.62 -3 54.2 6.879 6.265 125 17.8 3:17 ( 0, 51) 1998- 1- 7 9 38.20 -4 30.5 6.814 6.081 135 17.7 2:33 ( 0, 51) 1998- 1-17 9 32.87 -5 1.0 6.748 5.921 144 17.6 1:49 ( 0, 50) 1998- 1-27 9 26.75 -5 0.8 6.720 5.825 153 17.5 1:03 ( 0, 50) 1998- 2- 6 9 20.21 -5 20.8 6.650 5.720 158 17.5 0:17 ( 0, 50)

C/1997 O1 ( Tilbrook ) m1 = 6.7 + 5 log d + 20.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 15 37.38 31 22.3 2.638 2.841 68 17.4 5:36 (259, 45) 1998- 1- 7 15 47.02 35 33.5 2.741 2.816 75 17.7 5:38 (255, 53) 1998- 1-17 15 55.70 40 9.1 2.843 2.799 82 18.0 5:38 (249, 60) 1998- 1-27 16 3.03 45 5.3 2.946 2.796 88 18.3 5:35 (237, 64) 1998- 2- 6 16 8.46 50 15.6 3.048 2.812 94 18.6 5:29 (221, 67)

22P/Kopff m1 = 2.5 + 5 log d + 20.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 3 33.58 14 8.9 4.170 3.387 137 17.6 21:05 ( 0, 69) 1998- 1- 7 3 30.14 14 10.0 4.208 3.542 127 17.7 20:22 ( 0, 69) 1998- 1-17 3 28.46 14 17.6 4.246 3.714 116 17.9 19:41 ( 0, 69) 1998- 1-27 3 28.49 14 31.2 4.283 3.898 106 18.1 19:02 ( 0, 70) 1998- 2- 6 3 30.14 14 50.0 4.319 4.089 96 18.3 18:59 ( 23, 68)

1997 CU26 m1 = 6.5 + 5 log d + 5.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 9 6.99 10 24.6 13.704 12.937 139 17.7 2:41 ( 0, 65) 1998- 1- 7 9 5.13 10 24.8 13.698 12.835 150 17.7 2:00 ( 0, 65) 1998- 1-17 9 3.00 10 26.8 13.691 12.759 160 17.7 1:19 ( 0, 65) 1998- 1-27 9 0.70 10 30.4 13.685 12.714 170 17.7 0:37 ( 0, 66) 1998- 2- 6 8 58.33 10 35.0 13.679 12.700 172 17.7 23:52 ( 0, 66)

(5145) Pholus m1 = 7.0 + 5 log d + 5.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 13 52.65 13 53.8 12.775 12.964 76 18.1 5:36 (303, 57) 1998- 1- 7 13 54.45 14 4.0 12.801 12.836 85 18.1 5:38 (318, 64) 1998- 1-17 13 55.78 14 17.7 12.828 12.707 94 18.1 5:38 (338, 68) 1998- 1-27 13 56.60 14 34.6 12.854 12.581 103 18.0 5:32 ( 0, 70) 1998- 2- 6 13 56.90 14 54.0 12.881 12.462 113 18.0 4:53 ( 0, 70)

C/1997 A1 ( NEAT ) m1 = 10.0 + 5 log d + 10.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 1 1.39 52 4.6 3.650 3.147 113 18.1 18:33 (180, 73) 1998- 1- 7 0 51.39 48 41.5 3.697 3.343 103 18.3 18:33 (150, 74) 1998- 1-17 0 46.13 45 49.0 3.746 3.554 93 18.5 18:41 (127, 68) 1998- 1-27 0 44.13 43 27.9 3.797 3.773 83 18.7 18:50 (118, 60) 1998- 2- 6 0 44.40 41 36.2 3.849 3.993 74 18.9 18:59 (115, 51)

1997 MD10 m1 = 16.0 + 5 log d + 5.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 20 42.92 39 31.6 1.661 1.711 70 18.3 18:26 (115, 41) 1998- 1- 7 21 24.61 42 38.0 1.716 1.744 71 18.4 18:33 (119, 41) 1998- 1-17 22 10.34 45 12.7 1.778 1.799 72 18.5 18:41 (123, 41) 1998- 1-27 22 58.65 47 3.5 1.846 1.877 72 18.7 18:50 (125, 41) 1998- 2- 6 23 47.46 48 5.8 1.919 1.979 72 18.9 18:59 (126, 42)

74P/Smirnova-Chernykh m1 = 8.5 + 5 log d + 10.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 0 47.50 -1 0.6 4.598 4.420 94 18.4 18:26 ( 3, 54) 1998- 1- 7 0 50.54 -0 24.4 4.590 4.570 84 18.4 18:33 ( 21, 53) 1998- 1-17 0 54.74 0 18.0 4.582 4.718 76 18.5 18:41 ( 37, 49) 1998- 1-27 0 59.98 1 5.4 4.573 4.860 67 18.5 18:50 ( 51, 44) 1998- 2- 6 1 6.12 1 57.0 4.565 4.993 59 18.6 18:59 ( 62, 37)

P/1996 R2 ( Lagerkvist ) m1 = 9.0 + 5 log d + 15.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 6 7.02 26 24.8 3.223 2.243 174 18.4 23:38 ( 0, 81) 1998- 1- 7 5 58.91 26 26.5 3.252 2.299 162 18.5 22:51 ( 0, 81) 1998- 1-17 5 52.20 26 24.6 3.280 2.383 151 18.6 22:05 ( 0, 81) 1998- 1-27 5 47.46 26 20.5 3.309 2.492 140 18.8 21:21 ( 0, 81) 1998- 2- 6 5 45.01 26 15.4 3.338 2.622 129 18.9 20:39 ( 0, 81)

131P/Mueller 2 m1 = 9.3 + 5 log d + 20.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 1 22.63 6 55.2 2.423 1.970 105 18.5 18:54 ( 0, 62) 1998- 1- 7 1 32.04 7 28.8 2.430 2.097 97 18.6 18:33 ( 5, 62) 1998- 1-17 1 43.10 8 13.8 2.439 2.229 90 18.8 18:41 ( 24, 61) 1998- 1-27 1 55.58 9 7.4 2.449 2.362 83 18.9 18:50 ( 40, 58) 1998- 2- 6 2 9.26 10 6.9 2.461 2.496 76 19.1 18:59 ( 53, 54)

C/1997 L1 ( Xinglong ) m1 = 7.0 + 5 log d + 10.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 16 45.06 4 46.5 5.776 6.524 37 18.7 5:36 (277, 18) 1998- 1- 7 16 52.06 5 41.5 5.815 6.480 44 18.7 5:38 (282, 26) 1998- 1-17 16 58.62 6 44.5 5.856 6.420 51 18.7 5:38 (287, 33) 1998- 1-27 17 4.62 7 55.6 5.897 6.348 58 18.7 5:35 (291, 40) 1998- 2- 6 17 9.97 9 14.7 5.938 6.266 66 18.7 5:29 (296, 46)

85P/Boethin m1 = 6.5 + 5 log d + 20.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 11 32.73 6 57.2 3.143 2.737 105 18.6 5:07 ( 0, 62) 1998- 1- 7 11 31.96 7 7.0 3.226 2.675 115 18.8 4:27 ( 0, 62) 1998- 1-17 11 28.98 7 30.1 3.307 2.624 126 19.0 3:44 ( 0, 63) 1998- 1-27 11 23.90 8 4.7 3.388 2.590 138 19.2 3:00 ( 0, 63) 1998- 2- 6 11 17.01 8 48.2 3.467 2.577 150 19.4 2:14 ( 0, 64)

C/1996 P2 ( Russell-Watson ) m1 = 7.0 + 5 log d + 9.2 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 3 8.25 -9 33.2 6.947 6.386 121 18.8 20:40 ( 0, 45) 1998- 1- 7 3 6.17 -8 59.2 7.018 6.587 112 18.9 19:58 ( 0, 46) 1998- 1-17 3 5.24 -8 19.0 7.095 6.806 103 19.0 19:18 ( 0, 47) 1998- 1-27 3 5.26 -7 35.5 7.172 7.033 94 19.1 18:50 ( 4, 47) 1998- 2- 6 3 6.19 -6 49.9 7.249 7.262 85 19.2 18:59 ( 21, 46)

62P/Tsuchinshan 1 m1 = 14.5 + 5 log d + 15.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 1 51.36 0 46.3 1.887 1.315 109 19.2 19:23 ( 0, 56) 1998- 1- 7 1 56.63 2 50.3 1.830 1.360 101 19.1 18:49 ( 0, 58) 1998- 1-17 2 5.41 5 9.6 1.775 1.406 94 19.0 18:41 ( 11, 60) 1998- 1-27 2 17.44 7 40.2 1.724 1.453 87 18.9 18:50 ( 30, 60) 1998- 2- 6 2 32.53 10 18.6 1.676 1.498 82 18.7 18:59 ( 46, 58)

P/1997 G1 ( Montani ) m1 = 9.7 + 5 log d + 10.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 11 10.04 0 56.0 4.447 4.042 108 19.2 4:44 ( 0, 56) 1998- 1- 7 11 10.84 0 39.2 4.464 3.917 117 19.2 4:06 ( 0, 56) 1998- 1-17 11 10.23 0 31.6 4.482 3.806 128 19.1 3:26 ( 0, 56) 1998- 1-27 11 8.28 0 33.4 4.500 3.712 138 19.1 2:44 ( 0, 56) 1998- 2- 6 11 5.13 0 44.1 4.518 3.640 149 19.1 2:02 ( 0, 56)

80P/Peters-Hartley m1 = 12.0 + 5 log d + 15.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 10 8.51 -24 27.3 2.685 2.210 108 20.2 3:43 ( 0, 31) 1998- 1- 7 10 8.11 -27 16.3 2.621 2.056 114 19.8 3:03 ( 0, 28) 1998- 1-17 10 5.08 -29 57.6 2.558 1.916 120 19.5 2:21 ( 0, 25) 1998- 1-27 9 59.21 -32 23.6 2.494 1.791 125 19.2 1:36 ( 0, 23) 1998- 2- 6 9 50.62 -34 24.5 2.430 1.683 129 18.9 0:48 ( 0, 21)

P/1997 T3 m1 = 10.0 + 5 log d + 10.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 0 58.46 3 0.8 4.263 4.009 98 19.3 18:30 ( 0, 58) 1998- 1- 7 1 2.41 3 38.5 4.259 4.157 89 19.4 18:33 ( 18, 57) 1998- 1-17 1 7.57 4 22.8 4.256 4.305 80 19.5 18:41 ( 36, 54) 1998- 1-27 1 13.83 5 12.6 4.253 4.451 72 19.5 18:50 ( 51, 49) 1998- 2- 6 1 21.07 6 6.8 4.251 4.590 64 19.6 18:59 ( 62, 43)

133P/Elst-Pizarro m1 = 13.5 + 5 log d + 7.5 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 2 57.28 15 3.3 3.396 2.680 129 19.6 20:29 ( 0, 70) 1998- 1- 7 2 56.34 15 3.6 3.409 2.815 119 19.7 19:49 ( 0, 70) 1998- 1-17 2 57.47 15 12.8 3.422 2.963 109 19.9 19:10 ( 0, 70) 1998- 1-27 3 0.53 15 30.2 3.435 3.119 100 20.0 18:50 ( 11, 70) 1998- 2- 6 3 5.34 15 54.3 3.447 3.280 91 20.1 18:59 ( 38, 67)

26P/Grigg-Skjellerup m1 = 15.0 + 5 log d + 10.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 19 47.96 -6 45.0 1.802 2.640 25 19.7 18:26 ( 77, 7) 1998- 1- 7 20 12.98 -5 32.3 1.890 2.761 22 20.0 18:33 ( 81, 3) 1998- 1-17 20 36.34 -4 12.9 1.977 2.877 19 20.3 18:41 ( 85, -1) 1998- 1-27 20 58.21 -2 48.4 2.062 2.987 16 20.5 18:50 ( 90, -5) 1998- 2- 6 21 18.71 -1 19.9 2.146 3.087 14 20.8 18:59 ( 96,-10)

37P/Forbes m1 = 10.5 + 5 log d + 12.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 10 41.21 9 41.2 3.993 3.434 118 20.4 4:15 ( 0, 65) 1998- 1- 7 10 39.51 9 45.7 3.950 3.260 128 20.2 3:34 ( 0, 65) 1998- 1-17 10 35.99 9 59.8 3.907 3.103 139 20.1 2:52 ( 0, 65) 1998- 1-27 10 30.70 10 23.0 3.863 2.970 151 19.9 2:07 ( 0, 65) 1998- 2- 6 10 23.84 10 53.6 3.818 2.863 163 19.8 1:21 ( 0, 66)

D/1977 C1 ( Skiff-Kosai ) m1 = 9.0 + 5 log d + 15.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 0 13.61 -1 40.0 3.505 3.431 86 19.8 18:26 ( 17, 52) 1998- 1- 7 0 19.80 -0 49.4 3.480 3.554 77 19.9 18:33 ( 32, 49) 1998- 1-17 0 27.24 0 8.4 3.456 3.673 69 19.9 18:41 ( 46, 45) 1998- 1-27 0 35.80 1 12.4 3.431 3.784 61 19.9 18:50 ( 57, 40) 1998- 2- 6 0 45.34 2 21.4 3.407 3.886 54 19.9 18:59 ( 66, 34)

P/1992 G2 ( Shoemaker-Levy 8 ) m1 = 8.5 + 5 log d + 15.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 7 45.76 13 28.4 4.198 3.265 159 20.4 1:20 ( 0, 68) 1998- 1- 7 7 39.08 13 37.8 4.176 3.206 169 20.3 0:34 ( 0, 69) 1998- 1-17 7 31.97 13 51.7 4.154 3.179 171 20.3 23:44 ( 0, 69) 1998- 1-27 7 25.00 14 8.9 4.131 3.183 162 20.3 22:58 ( 0, 69) 1998- 2- 6 7 18.73 14 28.1 4.108 3.216 151 20.2 22:12 ( 0, 69)

134P/Kowal-Vavrova m1 = 13.0 + 5 log d + 10.0 log r Date R.A. Decl. r d Elong m1 Best time (A, h) 1997-12-28 10 33.28 4 23.5 3.604 3.037 117 21.0 4:07 ( 0, 59) 1998- 1- 7 10 33.84 4 12.4 3.555 2.866 127 20.8 3:29 ( 0, 59) 1998- 1-17 10 32.68 4 12.7 3.507 2.711 138 20.6 2:48 ( 0, 59) 1998- 1-27 10 29.80 4 24.9 3.459 2.577 149 20.4 2:06 ( 0, 59) 1998- 2- 6 10 25.40 4 48.9 3.412 2.468 160 20.3 1:22 ( 0, 60)