Comet C/2020 F8 (SWAN)

As Neill told us in the May notes, this comet should become visible from mid-May low in the north-east before dawn. It 'should' be naked eye and 'could' be mag 2 or 3. What's disappointing is that if 2019 Y4 ATLAS had not fizzled, we could have had two naked eye comets 5 degrees apart on May 22nd! Would have been one for the record books... Let's hope SWAN provides a show.

Finbarr.

www.popastro.com/main_spa1/comet/2020/04...t-under-the-horizon/

Good article re Comet Swan.

Oh i do hope this is a good one! It would be great to see this along with an NLC display at the same time.

it been too long for a good coney to come along......

Keith..

Comet Swan lies close to Algol (Beta Persei) on the nights of the 19th/20th and 20th/21st.

www.forbes.com/sites/jamiecartereurope/2...tter_impression=true

Article which details how bright/visible Swan may be. According to Sky Safari, it climbs above the horizon from next week from my location. Goes without saying, don't listen/read to any mainstream media stuff about a great Comet etc.

Hi Neill,

Many thanks for the update on SWAN... That's much appreciated. 

Clear skies, 

Darren. 

Made an attempt at 4am this morning but, although I have a reasonable NE horizon, the background sky was too bright and the comet's elevation too low. Mag 3.4 Mothallah in Triangulum was visible, 3 degrees from the comet, but SWAN didn't show. Next week will be more favourable, clear skies permitting.

Finbarr.

Hi Finbarr, 

Many thanks for the update. Would 3.4 mag be considered bright for a comet? 

Clear skies to you, 

Darren. 

It is quite rare Darren, the last time we saw a comet that bright from these latitudes was one of the PanStarrs gang back in March 2013, although I estimated Wirtanen at lower-fourth magnitude in Dec 2018. I've seen a couple of widefield images on the British forums and they show a diffuse fuzz just above naked-eye visibility. Certainly nothing to write home about at this point, although still brighter than the vast majority of comets. Even if it does get to mag 3, that light is spread out over a wider distance than an equivalent star, and still won't be enough to get the public talking. For that you need a mag 1 or 2 comet with a visible tail, which you only get once per decade or so on average.

Finbarr.

Hi Finbarr,

Very many thanks for your message. Interesting to think that it's seven years since a comet that bright was seen from these parts. It would be great to see SWAN brighten a bit more.

Clear skies,

Darren.

Well you need a dark background to see it on this image, but it's there alright, circled... SWAN has faded down to mag 7 and its best days appear already over. This was taken at 2.55am summer time with the sky beginning to lighten. Algol was a useful signpost just over a degree to the west. Next week the comet reaches perihelion and appears in evening skies but will be battling moonlight. So all in all, something of a fizzle -



Finbarr.

Hi Finbarr,

What a nice image you have shared with us. I can clearly see the comet on my PC. So, many thanks for staying up late to take the photo.

Clear skies,

Darren.