Comet Hyakutake Finder Chart for April
HST Comet Hyakutake Observing Team and NASA
During April Comet Hyakutake
heads in toward
the Sun
after passing the
Earth.
At this time
the comet's orbit places it north of the
Earth. Remaining visible in the northern sky
as it nears the Sun, it will set progressively earlier in the evening.
Early in April,
the Moon's glow will diminish viewing
of the comet's tail - except during the
lunar eclipse on April 3rd!
As the comet recedes from the Earth it will appear dimmer even though it is
getting intrinsically brighter as it nears the Sun. In late April the
intrinsic brightening effect will "win" and the comet will again appear to
brighten - possibly getting even brighter than it was last week.
At this point the
comet will appear near sunset low on
the northwestern horizon (see above).
So far
Comet Hyakutake has exceeded most expectations in brightness and length of
tail. If you haven't been impressed by Hyakutake, you probably haven't seen
it from a dark location!