[BAA-ebulletin 00638] Comet C/2011 W3 Lovejoy

[BAA electronic bulletins service]

On November 27, Australian amateur Terry Lovejoy discovered a faint 
comet low in the twilight sky. Observations quickly showed that this 
object, designated C/2011 W3, was a member of a family of comets called 
the Kreutz group. These are comets which are presumed to come from a 
single parent object and all of the group follow a similar orbital path. 
Kreutz comets are sungrazers and they pass very close to the Suns's 
surface at perihelion.

During the sky notes at the last BAA meeting I speculated about what 
would happen to Comet Lovejoy as it approached perihelion. The consensus 
at the time was that it would probably be destroyed. One of the nice 
things about comets is that they rarely do what you expect and this one 
was no different. Far from being destroyed, Comet Lovejoy was reborn as 
it rounded the sun and it is now putting on a spectacular show in the 
morning sky for observers in the southern hemisphere. Some good recent 
images showing the multiple, long tails can be found at the following links:

http://users.tpg.com.au/vtabur/2011w3/2011w3.htm

http://www.iceinspace.com.au/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=105827&d=1324518566

Unfortunately, those of us at high northern latitudes won't get a chance 
to see it since the comet's head and tail are below the horizon at 
sunrise, but if you are in the southern hemisphere it is certainly worth 
getting up early over the next few days to catch this amazing object in 
the morning twilight. Any observations would be gratefully received via 
e-mail at cometobs at britastro.org.

One other way of getting a good view of this comet is to hitch a ride on 
the International Space Station:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/nasa2explore/6555113049/

Nick James & Denis Buczynski.