Comet Coming Hyakutake Could Be Brightest Comet To Pass By For Some Time

After 20,000 years touring the solar system, comet Hyakutake is again trucking toward the sun, nearly sideswiping Mercury and coming a scant 9.3 million miles from turning Earth into roadkill.

It’s bigger than Halley’s. It should make comet Kohoutek look like a golf ball. It’s a star attraction in cyberspace and deep space.

“I kept looking for something a little smaller and dimmer,” said Brian Flick, who first saw the comet from outside Reardan March 14. “The more I looked at it, the more I realized it had to be it.”

To Earthlings, the comet resembles a tiny, fuzzy cottonball with a bright spot in the middle and a slight tail shooting off the upper right side. The comet’s a dirty iceberg racing through space on an orbit that takes it from the outer solar system to near the sun.

This comet was discovered Jan. 30 by a Japanese amateur astronomer, Yuji Hyakutake. It was his second comet discovery in six weeks.

If predictions hold, Hyakutake (pronounced he-yack-ew-tah-kee) could be the brightest comet to pass so close to Earth in 440 years. Still, it’s not that close: It’ll be about 40 times farther away than the moon.

As the comet heads toward the sun, it will enter Mercury’s orbit.

“If you really want a good view of this comet, go to Mercury,” advised Bruce Balick, an astronomy professor at the University of Washington whose students created a Hyakutake home page on the Internet.

Those of us on Earth are advised to find viewing spots away from city lights. Bring binoculars and a star chart. Let your eyes adjust to the night.

The comet is zipping across the eastern nighttime sky from south to north, accelerating as it approaches the sun. The comet is now visible after about 10 p.m., near the bright star Arcturus, pointed to by the handle of the Big Dipper.

“As of last night, it was very bright, very easy to see,” said Dan Bakken, president of the Spokane Astronomical Society. “It’s nearly as bright as the brightest stars out right now.”

Eastern Washington University astronomy professor Bob Ruotsalainen first saw the comet 10 days ago. “I got up about 4 o’clock in the morning and looked to the southeast, and there it was,” he said.

The comet’s head, or coma, will be brightest Monday and Tuesday nights, when it’s closest to the Earth. The comet will pass between the big and little dippers.

The coma will physically be about four times the size of the moon. In April, the tail will start to stream out as the comet approaches the sun, growing to about 10 times as long as the moon is wide.

Flick’s been mapping the comet since he first saw it, plotting its progress across the sky. It’s moved about the length of a fist held at arm’s length.

“It’s unusual to see one quite so bright, quite so close,” said Flick, a member of the Spokane Astronomical Society. “It’s something you don’t see very often that’s obviously other-worldly.”

Lately, Flick’s been getting his fill of Hyakutake. He sees it from his back yard. He sees it between the trees during nightly walks. He saw it last Friday night, when he was on a break from a musical gig at Salty’s.

“Even with lights around, you can see it if you know where to look,” he said.

Of course, that’s if predictions about the brightness hold. The much-hyped Comet Kohoutek fizzled in 1973. Comet West was a bright surprise in 1976. Halley’s was a disappointing fuzzball in 1985. The predicted Perseid meteor shower in 1993 petered out.

But Hyakutake is worth a look, astronomers say. And there won’t be another chance in this lifetime.

“This particular comet comes back every 20,000 years,” Balick said. “After it departs the region of the sun May 1, it’s heading out to the middle of nowhere.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo Graphic: Fire in the sky: Comet Hyakutake