Comet C/2019 Q4 (Borisov)
Comet C/2019 Q4 (Borisov) obtained on 2019 Sep. 11 (2h52-3h15UT), with 60-cm, f/3.3 Deltagraph telescope and CCD. Exposure time was 3x60 seconds.
Copyright © 2019 by H. Mikuz, Črni Vrh Observatory.
Comet Observation database (COBS) saw first light in 2010 and is maintained by Crni Vrh Observatory. It is a free and unique service for comet observers worldwide which allows submission, display and analysis of comet data in a single location.
Amateur astronomers can make valuable contributions to comet science by observing comets and submitting their observations to COBS as professional astronomers typically do not have telescope time required to acquire regular observations. We therefore encourage comet observers worldwide to submit their observations and contribute to the COBS database.
Registered observers may submit observations using a web based form which which stores the observations in an SQL database and stores them in ICQ format. Observations may be queried and plotted in the web site or exported for further processing, analysis and publication. The database currently contains more than 241000 comet observations of more than 1200 different comets and represents the largest available database of comet observations.
The data stored in COBS is freely available to everyone who honors our data usage policy. Please cite COBS as the reference if you use it for comet studies.
Light-curve of C/2018 W2 (Africano) (Sep 15, 2019).
| Type | Comet name | Obs date | Mag | App | T | Pow | Dia | DC | Tail | PA | Obs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| V | C/2017 T2 | 2019 09 11.10 | 12.2 | 25.4 | L | 104 | 1.1 | 3/ | MEY | ||
| V | C/2017 T2 | 2019 09 11.10 | 11.5 | 30.0 | L | 96 | 1.9 | 2/ | HAR11 | ||
| V | C/2018 N2 | 2019 09 11.09 | 11.6 | 25.4 | L | 104 | 1.5 | 5 | MEY | ||
| V | C/2018 N2 | 2019 09 11.09 | 10.8 | 30.0 | L | 96 | 2 | 4/ | HAR11 | ||
| V | 260P | 2019 09 11.08 | 12.1 | 25.4 | L | 104 | 1.1 | 5 | MEY | ||
| V | 260P | 2019 09 11.08 | 12.3 | 30.0 | L | 133 | 0.8 | 6 | 2.5m | 245 | HAR11 |
| V | C/2018 W2 | 2019 09 11.07 | 9.8 | 25.4 | L | 64 | 4.5 | 2/ | MEY | ||
| V | C/2018 W2 | 2019 09 11.07 | 8.7 | 19.8 | L | 49 | 9 | 2 | HAR11 | ||
| V | C/2018 W2 | 2019 09 11.06 | 10.0 | 20.0 | L | 42 | & 5 | 2 | SCH04 | ||
| C | 260P | 2019 09 11.01 | 12.3 | 5.4 | A | A200 | 1.5 | 0.04 | 248 | PAR03 | |
| C | C/2018 N2 | 2019 09 11.01 | 12.6 | 5.4 | A | A200 | 1.5 | 0.04 | 190 | PAR03 | |
| V | C/2017 T2 | 2019 09 10.10 | 11.7 | 30.0 | L | 96 | 1.8 | 3 | HAR11 | ||
| V | C/2018 N2 | 2019 09 10.09 | 11.6 | 30.0 | L | 96 | 2.1 | 5 | HAR11 | ||
| V | 260P | 2019 09 10.09 | 12.2 | 30.0 | L | 133 | 0.8 | 6 | 2.0m | 220 | HAR11 |
| V | C/2018 W2 | 2019 09 10.08 | 9.0 | 19.8 | L | 49 | 7 | 2 | HAR11 | ||
| V | C/2017 T2 | 2019 09 09.74 | 11.6 | 40.0 | L | 75 | 1.8 | 5 | YOS04 | ||
| V | 29P | 2019 09 09.72 | [14.0 | 40.0 | L | 257 | YOS04 | ||||
| V | 260P | 2019 09 09.71 | 11.6 | 40.0 | L | 75 | 1.7 | 6 | 3.2m | 225 | YOS04 |
| V | C/2018 N2 | 2019 09 09.70 | 11.9 | 40.0 | L | 75 | 1.5 | 7 | YOS04 | ||
| V | C/2018 W2 | 2019 09 09.69 | 9.6 | 40.0 | L | 36 | 6 | 2 | YOS04 |
| Comet name | Mag | Trend | Observable | Visiblity 45N |
Visiblity 45S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 85P/Boethin | 7.0 | steady | 90N to 66S | Best morning | Early evening |
| P/2008 Y12 (SOHO) | 7.5 | bright | 71N to 90S | Early evening | Evening |
| 289P/Blanpain | 11.0 | bright | 70N to 90S | Best morning | Best morning |
| C/2018 N2 (ASASSN) | 12.0 | bright | 90N to 62S | Best morning | Best morning |
| 260P/McNaught | 12.5 | steady | 90N to 59S | Best morning | Best morning |
| C/2017 T2 (PANSTARRS) | 12.5 | bright | 90N to 65S | Best morning | Early evening |
| C/2008 Y12 (SOHO) | 12.5 | bright | 56N to 90S | Best morning | Best morning |
| 68P/Klemola | 13.0 | steady | 78N to 90S | Evening | Best evening |
| 29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann | 13.5 | steady | 90N to 74S | Best morning | Best morning |
| C/2018 A6 (Gibbs) | 14.0 | steady | 16N to 90S | Never up | Never up |
The observable region is an approximate indication of the latitude at which the comet may be seen. The period when visible is calculated for latitude 45°N and 45°S.
A newly discovered comet has excited the astronomical community this week because it appears to have originated from outside the solar system. The official confirmation that comet C/2019 Q4 is an interstellar comet has not yet been made, but if it is interstellar, it would be only the second such object detected.
It’s looking likely that a newly discovered comet is actually an interstellar interloper from beyond our solar system. Since its discovery on 30 August, more and more measurements of C/2019 Q4 (Borisov)—named after the amateur astronomer from Crimea who found it—indicate it isn’t orbiting our Sun. Even NASA now says the comet’s extrasolar origin is promising.
Astronomers have spotted an object that looks likely to be a very rare visitor from outside our Solar System. If confirmed, this unusual body would be only the second interstellar object ever detected passing through our neighbourhood.
A new comet just discovered by amateur astronomer Gennady Borisov is rocketing through the solar system too fast for the sun's gravity to hang onto it. Indeed, it appears to be a visitor from the stars. Interstellar Comet Borisov will make its closest approach to the sun and to Earth in Dec. 2019.
Last week marked five years since ESA’s Rosetta probe arrived at its target, a comet named 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (or 67P/C-G). Tomorrow, 13 August, it will be four years since the comet, escorted by Rosetta, reached its perihelion – the closest point to the Sun along its orbit.
Early reports of the interstellar visitor 'Oumuamua's odd characteristics led some to speculate that the object could be an alien spacecraft, sent from a distant civilization to examine our star system. But a new analysis by an international team of 14 astronomers strongly suggests that 'Oumuamua has a purely natural origin.
