Comet Alert: 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova

There is a comet lurking nearby approximately 95 million kilometers away as of January 3, 2017.  It is currently sitting less than a degree below Theta Capricorni, a magnitude 4 star located in the constellation Capricornus.

The name of the comet is quite a mouthful: 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova.  Discovered late in 1948 it is a periodic comet with a period of approximately 5.25 years.

It currently has a magnitude of 7.1 leaving it out of sight from the naked eye.  Binoculars with an aperture of at least 50mm are likely required.  A good set of 10x50's should be able to pull it into view on a very clear evening.  A telescope would be the best bet to see the comet.  Unfortunately, the comet is close to the twilight which will make it more difficult to see.  The image below will give you a good idea of where the comet is located with reference to some easy naked eye planets.  Mars and Venus will point to Capricornus and following the constellation down to Theta Capricorni should allow you a glimpse of the comet.

45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova, January 3, 2017

A close up view in the vicinity of Theta Capricorni is provided below.  A viewing circle has been added for an 8" reflector with a 1200mm focal length and a 25mm focal length eyepiece.  Also provided is a circle utilizing a 15x70 set of binoculars with a much larger field of view.  The telescope setup has a field of view of 65' allowing a 53' separation between Theta Capricorni and 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova to fit nicely in the eyepiece.

45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova (Closeup), January 3, 2017

If you attempt to hunt down this comet I wish you the best of luck.  The frigid air and twilight light pollution will be working against you.  However, if you can grab Theta Capricorni in a decent optical instrument you should be successful in finding the comet.

For a printable sky map for January 3, 2017 17:30 please download the following pdf

45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova SkyMap

For more information please see:

http://www.universetoday.com/132571/see-christmas-time-binocular-comet-45phonda-mrkos-pajdusakova/