Maik Meyer ☄️
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comethunter.de
Maik Meyer ☄️
@comethunter.de
650 followers 210 following 1.5K posts
Comet hunting in plate vaults & libraries, Meyer comet group, orbit linking & calculating, cometary history, MP (52005), author, currently working on revision of Cometography 1, visual comet observing, www.comethunter.de
ORCID: 0009-0004-8545-9458
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comethunter.de
"You are quite right to say in one of the notebooks of your Correspondance astronomique that often there is as much merit in discovering observations of an old comet as in finding a new one."

Heinrich Wilhelm Matthias Olbers (1758-1862)
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(Lithograph by R. Suhrlandt. Wellcome Collection)
A lithograph of a middle-aged man with a bald forehead and gray hair. He is looking at the viewer quite earnestly and holds a small refractor. There is text below the image.
November 28, 2025 at 5:07 PM
comethunter.de
👀 🐈
November 20, 2025 at 6:53 PM
comethunter.de
The at least three fragments of comet C/2025 K1 (ATLAS) imaged by Michael Jäger on Nov 18, 2025, at 3:17 UT, 42x7 sec, f= 1200 mm.
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A closeup of a comet's head with three apparent fragments in the inner coma. The comet has a white, dusty tail towards the upper right. In the background star trails are visible.
November 18, 2025 at 6:40 PM
comethunter.de
Okay, paper deadline mid-February. Should be doable if I can keep the momentum. Hate it and love it at the same time. Can't wait to see it published. Let's go.

Scholar Sharpening His Quill
Gerrit Dou (Leiden 1613 – 1675 Leiden)

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An elderly scholar, clad in a purplish-brown skullcap and fur-trimmed tabard, is seated at his study before an open book. With clenched chin and furrowed brow, he cautiously attempts to slice the tip of a quill pen, using the soft pad of his thumb to balance the tip against the pressure of his blade. Concentrating on the precision of his task, he peers intently at the quill through gold-trimmed spectacles perched at the end of his nose. Surh, Dominique. “Scholar Sharpening His Quill” (2017). In The Leiden Collection Catalogue, 4th ed. Edited by Arthur K. Wheelock Jr. and Elizabeth Nogrady with Caroline Van Cauwenberge. New York, 2023–. https://theleidencollection.com/artwork/a-scholar-sharpening-his-quill/ (accessed November 17, 2025).
November 17, 2025 at 6:39 PM
comethunter.de
#bskycometography no. 365

C/1989 W1 (Aarseth-Brewington)

1989 Nov 16: Discovered by K. B. Aarseth (Norway) and H. J. Brewington (USA) at 8.5 mag. Prediscovery images of Sep 1. The comet passed perihelion on Dec 27 and reached 3 mag. It was last finally seen on 1990 Jan 31.
☄️🔭 #CometWatch
Image of comet C/1989 V1 (Aarseth-Brewington) of 1989 Dec 20, by Michael Jäger, https://fg-kometen.vdsastro.de/pix/test/bild.php?nr=8375
November 16, 2025 at 2:59 PM
comethunter.de
#bskycometography no. 364

C/1890 V1 (Zona)

1890 Nov 15: Discovered by T. Zona (Italy) at 8 mag. The comet was well past perihelion (Aug 7 at 2.05 au) and did not become brighter. The comet was last detected on 1891 Jan 13. (No, the image does not show Rasputin...)
☄️🔭 #CometWatch
Image of Temistocle Zona, http://eugenioomodeo.altervista.org/Zona/temistocleZona.html
November 15, 2025 at 3:19 PM
comethunter.de
#bskycometography no. 363

C/1984 V1 (Levy-Rudenko)

1984 Nov 14: Discovered by D. H. Levy (USA) and M. Rudenko (USA) one day later at 9.5 mag. Prediscovery on Nov 13 by Mori (Japan). The comet reached 8 mag around perihelion (Dec 14 at 0.92 au) and was last seen on 1985 May 24.
☄️🔭 #CometWatch
Comet C/1984 V1 (Levy-Rudenko) on 1985 Feb 18 by Michael Jäger, https://fg-kometen.vdsastro.de/pix/test/bild.php?nr=5553
November 14, 2025 at 3:57 PM
comethunter.de
#bskycometography no. 362

C/1947 V1 (Honda)

1947 Nov 13: Discovered by M. Honda (Japan) at 9 mag shortly prior passing perihelion on Nov 17 at 0.75 au. The comet was moving quickly into southern skies and was last seen on Dec 19.
☄️🔭 #CometWatch
Minoru Honda (left) and Koichiro Tomita in 1977, http://www.skaw.sk/rozhovor-shigeki-murakami.html
November 13, 2025 at 4:07 PM
comethunter.de
#bskycometography no. 361

C/1974 V1 (van den Bergh)

1974 Nov 12: Discovered by S. van den Bergh (USA) at 17 mag. Perihelion occurred already on Aug 7.77 at 6.02 au. The comet did not become brighter and was last detected on 1976 Dec 26.
☄️🔭 #CometWatch
Discovery story by Sidney van den Berg from Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, Vol. 69, p.29, https://articles.adsabs.harvard.edu/pdf/1975JRASC..69...29V
November 12, 2025 at 4:56 PM
comethunter.de
#bskycometography no. 360

C/1906 V1 (Thiele)

1906 Nov 11: Discovered by H. Thiele (Denmark) visually at 8.5 mag. Perihelion occurred on Nov 21 at 1.21 au with the comet being ~7 mag. Perigee on Nov 28 at 0.63 au. The comet was last detected on 1907 Jan 23. Period ~600 years.
☄️🔭 #CometWatch
Situation of comet C/1906 V1 (Thiele) in the solar system at the day of discovery
November 11, 2025 at 3:42 PM
comethunter.de
#bskycometography no. 359

C/1857 V1 (Donati-van Arsdale)

1857 Nov 10: Discovered by G. B. Donati (Italy) and R. van Arsdale (USA) at 9 mag two days prior perigee at 0.65 au. Perihelion on Nov 19 at 1.01 au. The comet did not become brighter and was last detected on Dec 19.
☄️🔭 #CometWatch
Image of Giambattista Donati, http://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/museum/isim.asp?c=300201, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6587971
November 10, 2025 at 3:54 PM
comethunter.de
#bskycometography no. 358

C/2013 V4 (Catalina)

2013 Nov 9: Discovered by the Catalina Survey (USA) at 17.5 mag. Prediscovery images of Oct 23 (PANSTARRS) & 31 (Catalina). The comet reached 13-14 mag around perihelion (2015 Oct 6 at 5.17 au). It was last detected on 2018 Aug 6.
☄️🔭 #CometWatch
Image of comet C/2013 V4 on 2014 Dec 26, by Roland Fichtl, https://fg-kometen.vdsastro.de/pix/test/bild.php?nr=11596
November 9, 2025 at 3:25 PM
comethunter.de
"So offt Du sihst ein Strobelstern/ Gedenck die Straff sey ja nicht fern."

"Every time you see a hairy star/ remind yourself that punishment's not far."

J. Herrenschmidt, 1619, Virga Vigilans/ Ein Einfältiger/ doch Christlicher/ und Geistlicher Discurs, von jetzigem/ am Himmel stehenden Cometen
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"So offt Du sihst ein Strobelstern / Gedenck die Straff sey ja nicht fern." "Every time you see a hairy star / remind yourself that punishment's not far."
November 9, 2025 at 10:32 AM
comethunter.de
#bskycometography no. 357

C/1956 R1 (Arend-Roland)

1956 Nov 8: Discovered by S. J. V. Arend & G. Roland (Belgium) at 10 mag. Predisc of Nov 7 from Japan. The comet reached 1 mag around perihelion (1957 Apr 8 at 0.32 au). Max tail 30° and 15° sunward tail! Last seen on Apr 11.
☄️🔭 #CometWatch
Image of C/1956 R1 by on 1957 Apr 27 by R. Waterfield, BAA Comet Section, https://britastro.org/cometobs/1956r1/1956r1_19570427_rwaterfield.html
November 8, 2025 at 3:37 PM
comethunter.de
Spent the last six hours with translations from Latin of mentions of medieval comets in chronicles and annals for the revision of Cometography 1. As the weather is awful with fog and rain this was the best thing to do. Next session tomorrow.
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Carl Spitzweg, 1839, The poor poet
November 8, 2025 at 2:41 PM
comethunter.de
#bskycometography no. 356

C/2018 V1 (Machholz-Fujikawa-Iwamoto)

2018 Nov 7: Disc by D. E. Machholz (visual), S. Fujikawa & M. Iwamoto (Japan) at 10 mag. It's the last visual comet discovery! Perihelion on Dec 3 at 0.39 au w/ 7-8 mag. Last seen on Dec 17, possibly disintegrated.
☄️🔭 #CometWatch
Image of comet C/2018 V1 on 2018 Nov 18, by Michael Jäger, https://fg-kometen.vdsastro.de/pix/test/bild.php?nr=20224
November 7, 2025 at 2:59 PM
comethunter.de
#bskycometography no. 355

17P/1892 V1 (Holmes)

1892 Nov 6: Disc by E. Holmes (England) at 4 mag while in outburst five months after perihelion (Jun 13 at 2.14 au)! The comet faded slowly while becoming larger and diffuse. 2nd outburst on 1893 Jan 16. P=6.90 y, recovery in 1899.
☄️🔭 #CometWatch
Development of brightness and size of comet 17P/Holmes during the ourburst of 2007 by Naoyuki Kurita, https://stellarscenes.net/comet_e/holmes_change.htm
November 6, 2025 at 3:12 PM
comethunter.de
#bskycometography no. 354

32P/1926 V1 (Comas Sola)

1926 Nov 5: Discovered by J. Comas Solá (Spain) at 12 mag. Prediscovery just a few hours earlier by Neujmin (Ukraine). The comet reached about 10-11 mag and passed perihelion on 1927 Mar 22 at 1.77 au. P=8.52 y, recovery in 1935.
☄️🔭 #CometWatch
Image of 32P/Comas Sola on 2015 Mar 9, by Roland Fichtl, https://fg-kometen.vdsastro.de/pix/test/bild.php?nr=12256
November 5, 2025 at 4:27 PM
comethunter.de
#bskycometography no. 353

161P/1983 V1 (Hartley-IRAS)

1983 Nov 4: Disc by M. Hartley (Australia) & on Nov 10 by the IRAS satellite at 15 mag. The comet passed perihelion on 1984 Jan 8 at 1.28 au at 10 mag. After outburst in Feb 7.5 mag! Last seen June 4. P=21.4 y, recovery in 2005.
☄️🔭 #CometWatch
Image of 161P/Hartley-IRAS on 2005 July 15 by Michael Jäger and Gerald Rhemann, https://fg-kometen.vdsastro.de/pix/test/bild.php?nr=1177
November 4, 2025 at 3:54 PM
comethunter.de
#bskycometography no. 352

C/1977 V1 (Tsuchinshan)

1977 Nov 3: Discovered by Y. C. Chang and colleagues at Purple Mountain Obs (China) at 13.5 mag. The comet was past perihelion (Jul 24 at 3.60 au). The comet did not become brighter and was last seen on 1978 Nov 1.
☄️🔭 #CometWatch
View of Purple Mountain Observatory in 1982, https://sciencesprings.wordpress.com/2016/02/18/from-new-scientist-four-big-cosmology-secrets-gravitational-waves-could-uncover/purple-mountain-observatory/
November 3, 2025 at 4:03 PM
comethunter.de
#bskycometography no. 351

C/1577 V1

1577 Nov 2: First seen from Peru at maybe -7 mag! Quickly seen world-wide. Perihelion on Oct 27 at 0.18 au, perigee on Nov 10 at 0.62 au. Used to prove for the first time that comets are outside of Earth's atmosphere. Last seen on 1578 Jan 26.
☄️🔭 #CometWatch
C/1577 V1 over Prague on 1577 Nov 12, broadsheet, Von einem schrecklichen und wunderbarlichen Cometen so sich den Dienstag nach Martini dieses lauffenden M. D. LXXViJ. Jahrs am Himmel erzeiget hat. (Geschrieben von Peter Codicillus von Tulechova), Zentralbibliothek Zürich - Von einem schrecklichen und wunderbarlichen Cometen so sich den Dienstag nach Martini dieses lauffenden M D LXXViJ Jahrs am Himmel erzeiget hat - 000003593.jpg
November 2, 2025 at 3:15 PM
comethunter.de
#bskycometography no. 350

C/1948 V1 (Eclipse Comet)

1948 Nov 1: Disc on photographs taken during the total solar eclipse at 2° from the sun at maybe -3 mag. From Nov 5 seen from the ground. Max tail ~20°. Perihelion on Oct 27 at 0.14 au. Last seen 1949 Apr 3. ALT for image source.
☄️🔭 #CometWatch
Image of C/1948 V1 taken from an airplane, image from https://skyweek.wordpress.com/2013/12/26/es-geschah-vor-65-jahren-mysterium-um-die-luft-aufnahmen-des-letzten-finsterniskometen/ by @cosmos4u.bsky.social, also https://www.rocketstem.org/2020/05/16/ice-and-stone-special-topic-21/
November 1, 2025 at 3:05 PM
comethunter.de
Wtf???? This is where we've come to... This email was a good reminder to delete my account there.
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Academia Our AI turned your paper "Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks: Identification" into a shareable comic.
November 1, 2025 at 6:58 AM
comethunter.de
#bskycometography no. 349

C/1888 U1 (Barnard)

1888 Oct 31: Disc by E. E. Barnard (USA) at 9.5 mag with a 10-cm comet-seeker. The comet was past perihelion (Sep 13 at 1.53 au) but faded only slowly. The comet was followed until 1889 May 23. Period ~2500 years.
Can you spot Barnard?
☄️🔭 #CometWatch
6th May 1921. Albert Einstein with the Yerkes Observatory staff. Einstein is on the front row, seventh from the right. Barnard is the fourth man to the left of Einstein., https://keighleyastronomicalsociety.co.uk/the-life-and-work-of-astronomer-edward-emerson-barnard/
October 31, 2025 at 4:02 PM
comethunter.de
I'm really looking forward to observe comet 3I visually when it has reached sufficient altitudes in the morning skies. Here's a lightcurve maintained by Marshall Eubanks. It clearly indicates an unusually large slope factor, which puts the comet currently at ~9 mag.
groups.io/g/comets-ml/...
🔭☄️
October 30, 2025 at 5:36 PM