Explanation:
A comet
discovered only this summer is brightening quickly and
already visible to the unaided eye.
Comet C/2004 Q2 (Machholz) is currently best visible in
Earth's Southern Hemisphere where some
observers report it brighter than
magnitude 5.
The comet is moving rapidly to northern skies and should
continue to brighten until early January.
By coincidence,
Comet Machholz will be easy to view as it will be nearly opposite the Sun
when appearing its brightest.
How bright Comet Machholz will become then remains uncertain,
but it will surely stay in northern skies for much of 2005, even approaching
Polaris in early March.
Pictured above, Comet Machholz was captured in early December
already sporting a bright surrounding
coma, a white oblong
dust tail
fading off toward the bottom, and a long
wispy ion tail toward the right
with a kink near the end.
