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Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.

See Explanation. Clicking on the picture will download the highest resolution version available.

Comet Hale-Bopp is That Bright

Explanation: Explanation : What's that fuzzy star? It's not a star, it's Comet Hale-Bopp . Not only has Comet Hale-Bopp become easy to see in the morning sky , it has become hard not to see it. It's that bright. Any morning just before sunrise, look towards the east . Comet Hale-Bopp is one of the brightest objects up. Its dominating presence is shown dramatically by this photo taken just west of Williston, North Carolina , USA . Here Comet Hale-Bopp shines above the telephone poles lining Highway 70. Too tired to get up in the morning to see the comet? Don't worry, in less than a month it will also be visible in the evening sky, just before sunset. And it will have a longer tail . From the Space Shuttle, Dr. Steven Hawley says, “Hale-Bopp looks great.”

Date February 27, 1997
Credit Comet Hale-Bopp is That Bright
Credit and Copyright: T. Forrest, J. Wolfe, M. Norris, 1997
Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC,
NASA Science Activation & Michigan Tech. U.