Comet Chasing in February


Comet chasing is the visual observation of telescopic comets.  Jump to:  Observing synopses    Summary data    Buy me a Coffee 

This month is an odd one. As the month begins, the only bright comet has disintegrated, leaving a fading tail. At least an 8-inch telescope will be required to see other comets this month. See the Observing Synopses for which comets are visible from your latitude, the best dates and the time of night.

Comets that have apparently disintegrated: C/2024 S1 (ATLAS), C/2022 S3 (PANSTARRS), C/2021 P4 (ATLAS), C/2020 Q1 (Borisov), C/2020 P1 (NEOWISE), and C/2019 Y4 (ATLAS). Beware that various other sources often fail to keep track of whether or not a comet still exists!

Comet Visibility in the Eyepiece

When you read below that a particular aperture is required to see a comet you can have a reasonable degree of confidence that the comet can in fact be seen in the eyepiece. 

 

This page uses code developed for SkyTools to predict the visibility of a comet.  Predicting how much aperture is required to see a comet is a very complex task. The magnitude alone is a very poor predictor.  SkyTools considers the magnitude, coma diameter, and degree of concentration of the comet, based on recent observations.The predictions are made for a Country/Suburban site, which is approximately Bortle 5, unless indicated otherwise. But always remember, comets are like cats. They both have tails and do what they want, and not always what we expect. This is one of the things that makes comet chasing interesting! 

Observing Synopses for February


Explanation of Comet Synopses and charts (read this if you have questions)

C/2024 G3 (ATLAS): A southern hemisphere evening comet visible in binoculars
This comet disintegrated on or about January 19th, but as of January 31, the bright tail persists. Magnitudes are measured for the coma of the comet, which has now disappeared, so it is no longer possible to make meaningful measurements or predictions for visibility in the standard way. This remnant tail should fade, but so far has been hanging in there. Some observers report that the tail is still faintly visible to the unadied eye as of January 30. It begins the month in Piscis Austrinus and will move into Phoenix by month's end. The best visibility is early in the month as seen from the southern hemisphere, and it will not be visible from the northern hemisphere again.  FINDER CHART

Latitude Visibility February 1 Visibility February 8 Visibility February 15 Visibility February 22 Visibility March 1 Nights Visible
55o N Not visible Not visible Not visible Not visible Not visible  
40o N Not visible Not visible Not visible Not visible Not visible  
Equator Very low in the western sky during evening twilight at ~18:50 Not visible Not visible Not visible Not visible 1-
30o S Low in the western sky during evening twilight at ~19:50 Low in the western sky during evening twilight at ~19:50 Low in the western sky during evening twilight at ~19:40 Low in the western sky during evening twilight at ~19:30 Not visible 1-

C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS): A northern hemisphere morning comet visible in an 8-inch (20 cm) telescope at a dark site, or a 24-inch telescope under a country sky
This comet begins the month in Aquila at magnitude 11.2. Look for a 1.5' coma, diffuse condensation at center. It should fade slowly, moving into Delphinus by month's end.  FINDER CHART

Latitude Visibility February 1 Visibility February 8 Visibility February 15 Visibility February 22 Visibility March 1 Nights Visible
55o N Low in the eastern sky during morning twilight at ~06:10 Low in the eastern sky during morning twilight at ~05:50 Low in the eastern sky during morning twilight at ~05:40 Fairly high in the eastern sky during morning twilight at ~05:20 Fairly high in the eastern sky during morning twilight at ~05:00 1-
40o N Low in the eastern sky during morning twilight at ~05:50 Low in the eastern sky during morning twilight at ~05:40 Low in the eastern sky during morning twilight at ~05:40 Fairly high in the eastern sky during morning twilight at ~05:20 Fairly high in the eastern sky during morning twilight at ~05:10 1-
Equator Not visible Not visible Not visible Low in the eastern sky during morning twilight at ~05:10 Fairly high in the eastern sky during morning twilight at ~05:10 17-
30o S Not visible Not visible Not visible Not visible Not visible  

29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann: A morning comet visible in a 10-inch (25 cm) telescope at a dark site
This comet begins the month in Leo at magnitude 11.4. Look for a 4' , diffuse coma with definite brightening toward center. It should remain constant.  FINDER CHART

Latitude Visibility February 1 Visibility February 8 Visibility February 15 Visibility February 22 Visibility March 1 Nights Visible
55o N High at ~01:10 Not visible Not visible High at ~23:40 High at ~23:10 1-8, 15-
40o N High at ~01:10 Not visible Fairly high at ~21:00 High at ~23:40 High at ~23:10 1-8, 14-
Equator High at ~01:10 High at ~03:10 Fairly high at ~20:50 High at ~23:40 High at ~23:10 1-10, 14-
30o S High at ~01:10 High at ~01:50 Not visible High at ~23:40 High at ~23:10 1-10, 15-

13P/Olbers: A morning comet visible in a 14-inch (36 cm) telescope at a dark site
This comet begins the month in Sagittarius at magnitude 12.1. Look for a 2.5' coma, diffuse condensation at center. It should fade slowly.  FINDER CHART

Latitude Visibility February 1 Visibility February 8 Visibility February 15 Visibility February 22 Visibility March 1 Nights Visible
55o N Not visible Not visible Not visible Not visible Not visible  
40o N Not visible Not visible Not visible Not visible Not visible 23-24
Equator Not visible Fairly high during morning twilight at ~05:10 Not visible Fairly high during morning twilight at ~05:00 High during morning twilight at ~05:00 1-
30o S Not visible Fairly high in the eastern sky during morning twilight at ~04:20 Not visible Fairly high during morning twilight at ~04:30 High during morning twilight at ~04:40 1-

C/2022 E2 (ATLAS): A northern hemisphere evening comet visible in a 16-inch (41 cm) telescope at a dark site
This comet begins the month in Cassiopeia at magnitude 13.7. Look for a 50" coma, center much brighter than edges, though still diffuse. It should fade slowly, moving into Andromeda by month's end.  FINDER CHART

Latitude Visibility February 1 Visibility February 8 Visibility February 15 Visibility February 22 Visibility March 1 Nights Visible
55o N High in moonlight at ~18:40 High during evening twilight at ~18:50 High during evening twilight at ~19:10 High during evening twilight at ~19:20 High during evening twilight at ~19:30 1-
40o N High during evening twilight at ~18:50 High during evening twilight at ~19:00 High during evening twilight at ~19:00 High during evening twilight at ~19:10 High during evening twilight at ~19:20 1-
Equator Fairly high in the northern sky during evening twilight at ~19:20 Not visible Not visible Not visible Not visible 1-7, 13-15
30o S Not visible Not visible Not visible Not visible Not visible  

Summary Data for This Month's Telescopic Comets


Comets brighter than 16th magnitude.  This table is updated as necessary. The last column indicates the date of the last observation used to compute these values.  The constellation listed is where the comet was on the first of the month.
Comet Constellation

February 1st

February 15th

February 28th

Observations as of (UT)
Mag Diam Mag Diam Mag Diam
C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) Piscis Austrinus 6? -- 8? -- ? ? 2025 January 30
C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) Aquila 11.2 1.4' 11.5 1.4' 11.7 1.3' 2024 December 30
29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann Leo 11.4 4.1' 11.4 4.2' 11.4 4.1' 2024 December 31
13P/Olbers Sagittarius 12.1? 2.4'? 12.2? 2.5'? 12.4? 2.5'? 2024 October 20
C/2022 E2 (ATLAS) Cassiopeia 13.7 52" 13.8 48" 14.0 46" 2025 January 19
C/2021 G2 (Atlas) Libra 14.3? 53"? 14.2? 55"? 14.1? 57"? 2024 August 29
C/2023 C2 (ATLAS) Aquarius 14.3 28" 14.4 28" 14.5 27" 2024 September 5
12P/Pons-Brooks Ara 14.6 1.5' 14.8 1.5' 14.9 1.5' 2025 January 10
C/2024 B1 (Lemmon) Hercules 15.0 2.2' 15.3 2.2' 15.5 2.2' 2024 December 26
C/2024 J2 (Wierzchos) Vulpecula 15.2 39" 15.1 38" 15.1 37" 2024 December 28
C/2022 QE78 (ATLAS) Orion 15.2 34" 15.3 33" 15.3 32" 2025 January 29
333P/LINEAR Pegasus 15.3 38" 16.0 32" 16.5 29" 2025 January 18
C/2022 N2 (PANSTARRS) Pisces 15.4 31" 15.4 31" 15.4 31" 2025 January 18
P/2023 S1 Cancer 15.6 42" 15.6 41" 15.7 40" 2025 January 29
37P/Forbes Aquarius 15.7 39" 16.3 37" 16.8 36" 2024 December 17
C/2020 V2 (ZTF) Pavo 15.9 47" 15.9 46" 15.9 46" 2024 December 18
C/2023 Q1 (PANSTARRS) Camelopardalis 15.9 35" 16.1 33" 16.2 32" 2024 December 27
C/2023 H5 (Lemmon) Canes Venatici 16.0 29" 16.0 29" 15.9 29" 2025 January 23
*In solar conjunction and generally not visible 

For information about specific comets see Gary W. Kronk's Cometography 

Make your own visual observing custom charts for your location and telescope/binoculars: Software for visual comet observing 

Select comets that are appropriate for your imaging system, and plan when they are best imaged: Software for comet imaging 
 

Links

Skyhound's Guide to Comets
Skyhound's Guide to Finding Comets
BAA Comet Section
Weekly Information About Bright Comets
Cometography