. 24/7 Space News .
New Year Comet Is A "Machholz" Of A Site To See

Comet C/2004 Q2 (Machholz) at NEO/NASA
Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jan 03, 2005
Comet Machholz is now at its best, high in the evening sky! And over the first week of January there's no moonlight to interfere. The comet is a stunning objeect in binoculars, glowing at 4th magnitude pale green-gray.

This week it's in Taurus west of Aldebaran, moving northward toward the Pleiades. It passes just 2� west of the Pleiades on the evening of January 7th (think photo opportunity!). See our article and finder chart in the January Sky & Telescope, page 84, or the version online.

Machholz will continue to be an easy binocular target high in the evening sky all January, though moonlight will return from about the 15th to 27th. The comet is a little brighter than originally predicted, suggesting that it will peak at about magnitude 3.6 for the first half of January.

But later in the month it will still be nearly as bright. The comet is fairly easily visible to the naked eye in a dark sky, and visible to the naked eye with greater difficulty (if at all) through moonlight or light pollution. Basically, if you can see the Andromeda Galaxy, you can certainly see Machholz. It's sure to be remembered as the highlight of this observing season!

Related Links
Sky and Telescope
Comet Machholz at Heavens Above
Space Weather
SpaceDaily
Search SpaceDaily
Subscribe To SpaceDaily Express

Deep Impact Arrives At KSC For December Launch
Pasadena CA (SPX) Oct 25, 2004
NASA's Deep Impact spacecraft has arrived in Florida to begin final preparations for a launch on Dec. 30, 2004. The Deep Impact spacecraft is designed to launch a copper projectile into the surface of comet Tempel 1 on July 4, 2005, when the comet is 133.6 million kilometers (83 million miles) from Earth.



Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only














The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2016 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement All images and articles appearing on Space Media Network have been edited or digitally altered in some way. Any requests to remove copyright material will be acted upon in a timely and appropriate manner. Any attempt to extort money from Space Media Network will be ignored and reported to Australian Law Enforcement Agencies as a potential case of financial fraud involving the use of a telephonic carriage device or postal service.