Weekly Information about Bright Comets (2008 Aug. 16: North)

Japanese version Home page	Updated on August 17, 2008
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Best time and the azimuth, altitude (A,h) are at lat. 35 deg in the Northern Hemisphere.

17P/Holmes Great outburst occured on Oct. 24, 2007, and it bacame a naked eye comet of 2 mag. It kept so bright as 5.5 mag still on Apr. 30 (Carlos Labordena), but it was extremely faint and difficult to see. The size was so large, the diameter was larger than 60 arcmin. Now appearing in the morning sky, but still low. It will become observable in good condition in autumn again. The extremely faint large diffuse object may be detected with a best sky condition, around 5-6 mag with a diameter of 1 or 2 degrees. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 8 5.66 29 58.2 4.539 3.673 27 6.1 3:48 (240, 10) Aug. 23 8 14.33 29 29.0 4.516 3.700 32 6.1 3:55 (244, 14) C/2008 A1 ( McNaught ) Now it is 8.0 mag (Aug. 16, Marco Goiato). It is expected to be 7.5 mag in September. It keeps moving in the southern sky, and it is unobservable for a while in the Northern Hemisphere. It will appear in the evening sky at 8 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. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 10 22.39 -47 30.4 1.412 1.293 61 8.1 20:19 ( 54,-40) Aug. 23 11 15.67 -47 19.0 1.360 1.234 60 7.9 20:08 ( 52,-34) C/2007 W1 ( Boattini ) It became so bright as 4.7 mag, and so large as 20 arcmin in June (June 12, Marco Goiato). Now it is fading. But it is still bright as 8.0 mag (Aug. 13, Juan Jose Gonzalez). It keeps observable in good condition for a long time after this. It will be visible visually until around November. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 2 33.33 21 17.0 0.589 1.262 100 8.6 3:48 (308, 70) Aug. 23 2 23.50 22 33.1 0.624 1.350 108 9.0 3:55 (337, 77) 6P/d'Arrest Now it is 9.2 mag (Aug. 16, Marco Goiato). Brightening rapidly as expected, and expanding the large coma. It will reach up to 9 mag and keep bright for a long time from summer to autumn. In the Northern Hemisphere, it becomes low in the south at brightest, but it keeps observable until it fades out. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 20 17.41 -18 19.9 0.359 1.354 158 10.3 22:37 ( 0, 36) Aug. 23 20 31.11 -24 31.8 0.375 1.357 153 10.0 22:23 ( 0, 30) 19P/Borrelly Now it is so bright as 9.6 mag (Aug. 2, Juan Jose Gonzalez). 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 finally appearing in the morning sky. It keeps observable and fading in the morning sky after this. Now it is brighter than originally expected. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 7 30.25 26 3.1 2.113 1.385 33 10.5 3:48 (248, 14) Aug. 23 7 55.02 26 53.6 2.106 1.404 35 10.6 3:55 (248, 16) C/2008 J1 ( Boattini ) Now it is so bright as 9.7 mag (Aug. 13, Juan Jose Gonzalez). In the Northern Hemisphere, it keeps observable until 2009 spring when the comet becomes faint. It will move near by the Northern Pole from summer to autumn, and will be observable all night. It keeps bright at 10 mag until August, then it will be visible visually until around October. In the Southern Hemisphere, it will never be observable again. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 19 33.30 87 26.8 1.680 1.779 78 10.8 21:35 (180, 37) Aug. 23 16 1.49 87 54.9 1.708 1.803 78 11.0 20:08 (178, 37) 15P/Finlay It brightened up to 9.2 mag on July 15 (Juan Jose Gonzalez). It is bright as 10.9 mag still on Aug. 9 (Juan Jose Gonzalez). Although it kept locating extremely low for a while in the Northern Hemisphere, it is getting higher gradually after this. It will be fading gradually after this, but it will be visible visually until September. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 6 36.94 26 53.2 1.729 1.245 45 11.4 3:48 (253, 25) Aug. 23 6 58.66 26 53.6 1.762 1.306 47 11.8 3:55 (255, 27) C/2007 N3 ( Lulin ) Now it is 11.0 mag (Aug. 2, Marco Goiato). Small and strongly condensed. It is expected to reach to 6 mag in 2009 February. It keeps observable until October. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 18 15.31 -21 39.5 1.660 2.439 130 11.5 20:33 ( 0, 33) Aug. 23 17 51.12 -21 44.9 1.714 2.362 117 11.4 20:08 ( 7, 33) C/2006 OF2 ( Broughton ) Now it is bright as 11.4 mag (Aug. 3, Carlos Labordena). Slightly fainter than originally expected, but brightening well. It will reach to 11 mag and will be observable in good condition in autumn. It keeps observable, visible visually, brighter than 14 mag for a long time until 2009 May. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 4 3.23 50 53.8 2.491 2.455 76 11.6 3:48 (228, 58) Aug. 23 4 21.01 52 21.8 2.426 2.446 79 11.5 3:55 (224, 60) C/2006 Q1 ( McNaught ) It reached to 10.9 mag in May (May 11, Marco Goiato). Now it is fading slowly. It has already faded down to 12.0 mag (July 21, Alexandre Amorim). In the Southern Hemisphere, it keeps observable until late August when it fades down to 12 mag. It is not observable in the Northern Hemisphere. But it will appear in the morning sky again at 13 mag at the end of 2008, then it keeps bright and observable for a while. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 12 13.37 -3 26.3 3.482 2.799 41 12.0 20:19 ( 85, 1) Aug. 23 12 24.45 -3 4.7 3.557 2.812 36 12.0 20:08 ( 86, 0) C/2007 G1 ( LINEAR ) Now it is bright as 11.5 mag (Aug. 4, Marco Goiato). It keeps bright at 12 mag for a long time from 2008 spring to 2009 spring. However, it moves southwards, and it will be unobservable soon in the Northern Hemisphere. It will appear in the northern sky again in 2009 autumn, but it will be fainter than 15 mag and will keep locating very low after that. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 15 22.88 -36 3.6 2.561 2.820 94 12.0 20:19 ( 31, 10) Aug. 23 15 19.31 -37 17.1 2.654 2.796 87 12.1 20:08 ( 34, 7) C/2006 W3 ( Christensen ) Brightening very rapidly, faster than expected. It is already so bright as 11.7 mag (Aug. 5, Jose Carvajal). It is expected to reach to 10 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) Aug. 16 4 4.27 68 3.4 4.516 4.370 75 13.1 3:48 (202, 50) Aug. 23 3 58.22 69 33.7 4.382 4.327 80 13.0 3:55 (196, 52) C/2008 C1 ( Chen-Gao ) It reached up to 9.5 mag on Mar. 29 (Maik Meyer). Now it is fading slowly. It faded down to 10.7 mag on May 11 (Marco Goiato), and it was a diffuse object with a weak condensation. In the Northern Hemisphere, it will never be observable again. In the Southern Hemisphere, it keeps observable until it fades out. No observations have been reported recently, and the current brightness is uncertain. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 10 6.68 -38 10.8 2.621 2.155 52 13.7 20:19 ( 67,-41) Aug. 23 10 23.14 -40 48.2 2.699 2.230 52 13.9 20:08 ( 63,-42) 29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 1 In the last season, it became so bright as 10 mag in 2008 January. Although it had been unobservable for a while, now it is appearing in the morning sky. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 7 39.58 25 2.6 6.896 6.052 31 14.1 3:48 (247, 12) Aug. 23 7 44.85 24 48.4 6.836 6.054 36 14.0 3:55 (251, 17) C/2007 B2 ( Skiff ) Now it is bright as 12.7 mag (Apr. 12, Marco Goiato). It will never be observable again in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Southern Hemisphere, it keeps observable in good condition for a long time until autumn. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 12 59.27 -16 51.8 3.397 2.975 57 14.1 20:19 ( 68, 2) Aug. 23 13 8.34 -18 18.6 3.466 2.975 53 14.1 20:08 ( 68, 0) C/2006 U6 ( Spacewatch ) It was 15 mag on Jan. 14 (Michael Mattiazzo), brightening as expected. Now it must have reached up to 13.5 mag in the southern sky. In the Southern Hemisphere, it keeps observable for a long time after this. But in the Northern Hemisphere, it is not observable now. But it will appear in the morning sky at 15 mag in November, then it keeps observable while the comet will be fading slowly. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 9 32.59 -32 36.6 3.209 2.616 46 14.2 3:48 (285,-42) Aug. 23 9 47.88 -32 4.4 3.274 2.639 43 14.3 3:55 (286,-38) C/2005 L3 ( McNaught ) Now it is 12.7 mag (Aug. 1, Juan Jose Gonzalez), bright and visible visually. It will be getting lower in the evening sky after this, and will be too low to observe in October. But it will locate high again in winter, and will be visible visually at 14 mag. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 14 54.94 21 7.6 5.997 5.802 74 14.4 20:19 ( 84, 47) Aug. 23 14 53.56 20 44.0 6.109 5.816 68 14.5 20:08 ( 86, 43) 199P/2008 G2 ( Shoemaker 4 ) It had been so faint as 18 mag until July. However, an outburst occured on Aug. 3 and brightened up to 14.5 mag (Gustavo Muler). It is bright as 14.4 mag still on Aug. 6, and looks almost stellar (Erik Bryssinck). However, it will fade out rapidly after this. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 14 42.62 0 3.7 3.479 3.369 75 14.6 20:19 ( 64, 32) Aug. 23 14 47.89 -1 12.5 3.546 3.346 70 14.7 20:08 ( 65, 29) C/2007 Q3 ( Siding Spring ) Now it is 15.1 mag (Aug. 1, John Drummond). It is not observable in the Northern Hemisphere now, but observable in good condition in the Southern Hemisphere. It is expected to brighten up to 10 mag from late 2009 to early 2010. Because the comet moves in the southern sky for a long time, it keeps impossible or very hard to observe in the Northern Hemisphere until 2009 September. But after 2009 October, it is observable at 10 mag for a while in good condition. In the Southern Hemisphere, it keeps observable for a long time while brightening until 2009 June when it brightens to 11 mag. But it becomes unobservable around and after the brightest time. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 5 36.99 -39 44.7 4.990 4.884 78 14.7 3:48 (317, -4) Aug. 23 5 43.86 -40 30.9 4.897 4.827 80 14.6 3:55 (321, -1) 7P/Pons-Winnecke An outburst occured in late May, and it brightened up to 14.6 mag (May 23, Gustavo Muler). However, it faded down to the original brightness in late May. Now it is 17.3 mag (June 24, Catalina Sky Survey). It will reach to 14 mag in autumn, but it locates extremely low in the Northern Hemisphere. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 13 13.50 5 5.8 1.701 1.351 52 15.6 20:19 ( 83, 18) Aug. 23 13 31.58 1 38.7 1.695 1.322 51 15.4 20:08 ( 80, 16) 68P/Klemola Now it is 16.8 mag (July 7, Gustavo Muler). It keeps observable while the comet will be brightening gradually after this. It will reach up to 14.5 mag in autumn. However, then it locates low in the evening sky, and it will be unobservable soon in December. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 15 38.05 -6 44.7 2.118 2.355 90 15.6 20:19 ( 46, 37) Aug. 23 15 44.57 -7 33.7 2.159 2.313 85 15.5 20:08 ( 48, 34) 51P/Harrington Now it is 14.8 mag (July 29, M. Tichy). Now it is brightest, and it will be fading after this. It keeps observable in good condition until it fades out in winter. The position is very different from the original prediction. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 3 52.72 14 48.7 1.570 1.780 84 15.5 3:48 (292, 52) Aug. 23 4 5.25 15 26.4 1.531 1.803 87 15.6 3:55 (297, 56) 47P/Ashbrook-Jackson Now it is 15.6 mag (July 28, Ken-ichi Kadota). It will be 15.5 mag until October. It locates somewhat low in the Northern Hemisphere, but it keeps observable around 16 mag until winter. It is also observed visually at 14.6 mag (Aug. 6, Juan Jose Gonzalez). Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 21 15.52 -29 31.8 1.978 2.961 162 15.7 23:34 ( 0, 26) Aug. 23 21 9.92 -29 22.2 1.989 2.949 157 15.6 23:01 ( 0, 26) C/2007 U1 ( LINEAR ) Now it is 15.8 mag (Aug. 7, Ken-ichi Kadota). It will be observable at 15.5 mag in good condition in next autumn. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 4 9.84 22 9.4 3.376 3.330 78 16.0 3:48 (279, 52) Aug. 23 4 4.20 22 35.6 3.234 3.333 86 15.9 3:55 (286, 60) 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko Not it is 16.5 mag (July 31, Gustavo Muler). It will be brightening gradually after this, and reach to 12-13 mag in 2009 winter and spring. In the Northern Hemisphere, it keeps observable for a long time until 2009 May. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 21 22.90 -27 52.4 1.450 2.443 165 16.3 23:41 ( 0, 27) Aug. 23 21 14.38 -28 29.2 1.420 2.390 158 16.1 23:05 ( 0, 27) 85P/Boethin It is expected to reach up to 7 mag in winter, and will be observable in good condition. However, this comet has not been observed since 1986. It was not detected, fainter than 18 mag, on May 31 (Katsumi Yoshimoto). Nothing brighter than 20.6 mag was found around the predicted position on June 12 (Mitsunori Tsumura). It is predicted to be brightening up to around 17 mag, bright enough to be recovered. It will brighten very rapidly near by the perihelion. The condition of this apparition is good. It keeps observable for a long time until 2009 early summer both in the Northern Hemisphere and Southern Hemisphere. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 19 56.53 -25 22.9 1.011 1.965 152 16.9 22:15 ( 0, 30) Aug. 23 19 47.99 -25 23.0 0.987 1.900 143 16.4 21:39 ( 0, 30) 61P/Shajn-Schaldach Now it is 16.8 mag (July 13, Gustavo Muler). It will be observable at 16 mag in good condition in autumn. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 2 54.31 12 21.7 1.712 2.114 98 16.5 3:48 (313, 60) Aug. 23 3 3.60 12 32.4 1.639 2.111 103 16.4 3:55 (324, 64) C/2008 J6 ( Hill ) Now it is 16.0 mag (June 30, Michael Jager). It keeps observable in good condition after this in the Northern Hemisphere. It will be fading gradually, and will be fainter than 18 mag in November. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 23 4.23 54 42.3 1.985 2.511 109 16.5 1:27 (180, 70) Aug. 23 22 54.83 56 14.8 2.008 2.560 111 16.6 0:50 (180, 69) 144P/Kushida It must have already brightened up to 17 mag. However, it was not detected, fainter than 18.5 mag on Aug. 2 (Giovanni Sostero and Ernesto Guido). It is expected to brighten rapidly after this and reach up to 10 mag in winter. However, it may be much fainter than expected in fact. It keeps observable in good condition for a long time until early summer in next year when the comet fades out. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 2 34.13 19 11.6 1.813 2.241 101 17.1 3:48 (312, 68) Aug. 23 2 42.94 19 55.4 1.691 2.192 105 16.7 3:55 (326, 72) P/2001 R1 ( LONEOS ) Not recovered yet. But now it is brightest, and it should be arond 16.5 mag. It will getting higher, but will be fading gradually after this. It will be fainter than 18 mag in December. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 6 43.85 25 50.5 1.890 1.351 43 16.7 3:48 (254, 23) Aug. 23 7 9.71 25 41.9 1.882 1.361 44 16.7 3:55 (255, 25) 44P/Reinmuth 2 It was observed at 16.5-17 mag in 2007 autumn. Now it is 17.3 mag (July 2, J. F. Hernandez). It will be observable at 17 mag for a long time from summer to autumn. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 4 27.07 26 45.8 2.576 2.497 74 17.0 3:48 (269, 51) Aug. 23 4 36.26 27 8.8 2.517 2.524 78 17.0 3:55 (273, 56) C/2006 S3 ( LONEOS ) Now it is 17.8 mag (Aug. 3, Ken-ichi Kadota). It will brighten up to 12 mag in 2012. It is faint still in 2008, but observable at 17 mag in good condition. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 23 19.22 7 54.9 9.741 10.611 147 17.2 1:41 ( 0, 63) Aug. 23 23 15.96 7 40.5 9.651 10.574 154 17.2 1:11 ( 0, 63) P/2008 L2 ( Hill ) It will be observable at 17 mag in good condition in autumn. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 0 54.80 30 21.6 1.685 2.318 116 17.3 3:17 ( 0, 85) Aug. 23 0 58.37 30 18.1 1.621 2.318 121 17.2 2:53 ( 0, 85) P/2006 F1 ( Kowalski ) It was observed at 17.5-18 mag in 2006 and 2007. In 20080, it will be observable at 17.5-18 mag from summer to autumn. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 22 47.75 -22 2.1 3.175 4.152 162 17.3 1:10 ( 0, 33) Aug. 23 22 44.18 -22 49.6 3.167 4.154 165 17.3 0:39 ( 0, 32) P/2008 J2 ( Beshore ) It was bright as 12.7 mag on May 12 (Juan Jose Gonzalez), and strongly condensed. However, it has been getting diffuse and fading rapidly after that. Now it is 16.6 mag (July 5, Ken-ichi Kadota). A temporary outburst seems to be ending. It keeps observable in good condition until autumn. But it is moving southwards gradually, and the altitude will be getting somewhat lower in the Northern Hemisphere. It must be already too faint to see visually. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 16 37.66 -20 52.2 2.079 2.571 107 17.4 20:19 ( 22, 31) Aug. 23 16 43.37 -21 29.6 2.177 2.585 102 17.8 20:08 ( 25, 29) C/2005 S4 ( McNaught ) It was observed at 16.5-17 mag in 2006 and 2007. Because it is a very distant comet, it is observable at 17 mag still in 2008 in good condition. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 17 49.40 43 36.3 6.191 6.475 101 17.6 20:19 (167, 81) Aug. 23 17 44.04 43 4.2 6.263 6.496 98 17.6 20:08 (144, 80) 59P/Kearns-Kwee Now it is 18.2 mag (July 2, J. M. Ruiz M.). It will be observable at 16 mag in good condition from autumn to winter. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 2 22.87 24 49.0 2.417 2.803 101 17.9 3:48 (306, 74) Aug. 23 2 27.57 25 42.7 2.308 2.777 106 17.7 3:55 (327, 79) 2008 JS14 Peculiar asteroid moving along a cometary orbit with a period of 40 years. It will be observable at 18 mag in good condition from August to September. It has already passed the perihelion in May. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 22 21.92 6 10.8 2.136 3.097 157 17.9 0:44 ( 0, 61) Aug. 23 22 16.71 6 47.9 2.136 3.113 161 17.9 0:12 ( 0, 62) C/2007 K3 ( Siding Spring ) It was predicted to be so bright as 14 mag now. But actually, it is extremely faint as 19.5 mag (Aug. 4, Gustavo Muler). Although it locates in good condition, it will be hard to observe. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 22 17.65 16 33.4 1.548 2.469 148 19.8 0:40 ( 0, 72) Aug. 23 22 13.93 16 31.7 1.576 2.514 152 19.9 0:09 ( 0, 72) P/1999 WJ7 ( Korlevic ) It was observed at 16-17 mag at the discovery in 1999. It is predicted to be already 18 mag. But actually, it was not detected, fainter than 22.5 mag, in 2006 September (Carl Hergenrother). So it must be now fainter than at the discovery by 3-4 mag. Date(TT) R.A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. m1 Best Time(A, h) Aug. 16 0 16.72 5 28.8 3.351 4.152 137 21.2 2:39 ( 0, 61) Aug. 23 0 14.55 5 20.7 3.268 4.133 144 21.2 2:09 ( 0, 60)