Coming to the night sky near you: C/2011 L4 Pan-Starrs

[Nick Armstrong]

This cheeky, catchily-named little comet should be visible (if the cloud cover ever disappears ) over the next week: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21701641

Binoculars out, people

[Richard Tarleton]

Thanks for this! Haven't seen a comet since...1997. Fingers crossed for a clear night - a short trip to a coastal headland is called for! Where will you go - Parliament Hill?

[Anna]

Cali beat me to it, I was going to post in a day or two nearer the date when it would be more visible. I recall seeing Hale-Bopp and then we had that comet exploding overhead last year where I thougjt I would meet the same fate as Alkan.

[Richard Tarleton]

Hale-Bopp seemed to hang around for ages. I remember watching it while driving home on the M4 from a concert in Cardiff.

[Anna]

Hale-Bopp seemed to hang around for ages. I remember watching it while driving home on the M4 from a concert in Cardiff.

I did have a wonderful photo of it reflected in the River Wye. Magical.

[mangerton]

Thank you. This is very timely. I'm on leave next week and am going for a few days to the extreme SW of Scotland. More info here.

As Caliban points out, the weather will need to show a marked improvement. It's been dreadful here this week.

[rodney_h_d]

Hale-Bopp seemed to hang around for ages. I remember watching it while driving home on the M4 from a concert in Cardiff.

I agree. It was by far the most visible one I've experienced. I too remember seeing it quite clearly while driving home one evening over the South Downs.

[Ferretfancy]

An observation by Chris Lintott the other night said that it might be a naked eye object, so I doubt if it will be very spectacular, but you never know.

[rodney_h_d]

Has anybody seen this yet? The skies are reasonably clear tonight, so in spite of having had three eye operations in the last two months [none of them cataracts!] I'm going out with my binoculars to see if my good eye can spot anything! I just wish there weren't so many artificial lights around. :(

[Pikaia]

I saw it tonight at about 1900, when the clouds finally cleared out of the way. I couldn't see it with the naked eye but it was easily visible in binoculars, low down below a thin crescent moon. It should be better in a few days when it gets higher up and visible in a darker sky.

[rodney_h_d]

I saw it tonight at about 1900, when the clouds finally cleared out of the way. I couldn't see it with the naked eye but it was easily visible in binoculars, low down below a thin crescent moon. It should be better in a few days when it gets higher up and visible in a darker sky.

Thanks very much for that Pikaia! I hadn't even checked to see whether it would be visible as late as this so that's very useful! I'll try again earlier in the evening. :)