Comet 38P – Stephan-Oterma
Click here to download a printable pdf version of this page.
This period comet was discovered in 1867, by two observers in Marseilles Observatory.
It orbits The Sun in a 38 year orbit, moving out beyond the orbit of Uranus at Aphelion, perihelion at about the same distance from The Sun as Mars.
This comet reaches perihelion early this month, and will pass about 0.8 Astronomical Units (~74,000,000 miles) from Earth, reaching peak brightness around the 23rd of November.
The comet is currently (8th November 2018) about +10th magnitude but brightening slowly.
It could reach a maximum brightness of +9.5 on the 23rd of November.
The comet is moving in a wide arc just below Gemini, heading north-eastwards towards Lynx by the end of the year. By this time, it will have faded considerably.
Use the map at the bottom of this blog entry to find the comet.
Being so far north, it will be visible for the duration of its apparition.
It certainly won’t be as bright as Comet 46P, which should be very bright in December and is the subject of a separate blog entry:
http://www.star-gazing.co.uk/WebPage/comet-46p
Click here to download a printable pdf version of this page.
Path of comet 38P during January.