Bright comet appears in night sky
Posted: Fri, Jan 12, 2007, 7:38 AM ET (1238 GMT)
A surprising bright, if difficult to see, comet has appeared in the night sky, dazzling observers in the northern hemisphere. Comet C/2006 P1 (McNaught) has reached magnitudes as bright as -3.0 in recent days, making it the brightest comet in the last 30 years. Despite its brightness, the comet has been difficult for some to observe, since it is visible only for a brief time in the western sky just after sunset and in the eastern sky before sunrise. The comet, discovered last August by an Australian amateur astronomer, will pass close to the Sun and will be seen by the SOHO solar observation spacecraft over the next several days.
A surprising bright, if difficult to see, comet has appeared in the night sky, dazzling observers in the northern hemisphere. Comet C/2006 P1 (McNaught) has reached magnitudes as bright as -3.0 in recent days, making it the brightest comet in the last 30 years. Despite its brightness, the comet has been difficult for some to observe, since it is visible only for a brief time in the western sky just after sunset and in the eastern sky before sunrise. The comet, discovered last August by an Australian amateur astronomer, will pass close to the Sun and will be seen by the SOHO solar observation spacecraft over the next several days.
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