Soul of Systems

The Hale-Bopp Comet of 1995

 

The 1990s were a great decade for comets. In 1994, the astronomical world watched in awe as fragments of Comet ShoemakerLevy-9 impacted Jupiter, causing tremendous damage to the giant planet. Then in 1995, observers Alan Hale and Thomas Bopp independently discovered what was to become one of the most observed comets of the 20th century. What immediately excited astronomers was its relatively large discovery distance; beyond the orbit of Jupiter, Comet C/1995 O1 Hale-Bopp had to be an intrinsically large and bright object. Like Halley’s Comet in 1910, Hale-Bopp was “scooped” during its anticipated 1997 passage by the sudden appearance of Comet C/1996 B2 Hyakutake in early 1996. Both served as fine studies in the appearance of bright comets; one small and close up, and one large and bright, but farther away. Hale-Bopp displayed a fine twin ion and dust tail; Hyakutake passed just over 9 million miles from Earth and sported a tail that stretched halfway to the zenith. Both became circumpolar objects in the night sky and were above the horizon for observers based in mid-to-high northern latitudes for the entire night.