What to expect from Comet PANSTARRS in February Southern-sky
viewers have all the luck this month. January 31, 2013 As Comet
PANSTARRS makes its first trip through the inner solar system,
it could brighten to naked-eye visibility late in February for
observers in the Southern Hemisphere. // Astronomy: Roen Kelly
As February opens, Comet PANSTARRS (C/2011 L4) is acting the way
many comets do — unpredictably. Astronomers at the University of
Hawaii discovered this object June 7, 2011. By now, it should
have reached a brightness that would let observers from a dark
site see it without optical aid. And although the comet is
visible through even small binoculars, it unfortunately isn’t
living up to predictions. Comet PANSTARRS currently glows at
approximately magnitude 7. Astronomers use the magnitude system
to describe the brightness of any celestial object; the smaller
the number, the brighter the object. Most people can see a
magnitude 6 star from a dark site without optical aid. But,
unlike a star, a comet is