[Ian Cooper]

Hi to our Aussie mates across the ditch. My long time observing buddy Noel Munford and I started observing before comet rise here on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. Conditions were almost ideal. A cloud bank sat over the mountains to the east of us up to 3.5 degrees high.

Using bino's I could follow the tail stars of Scorpius down to Epsilon Sco. We saw Antares rise, then Mercury, which from our latitude of 40 south should have been lower than the predicted position of the comet. Still no sign of a tail or head.

Suddenly at 16.00 hrs U.T. (5.00 a.m. N.Z.D.T.) about 45 mins before local sunrise. I was sure that I could see a thin segment of tail arcing up in p.a. 120 degrees (11 o'clock to the horizon). My mate Noel wasn't sure at all. He took a photo which he has since re-worked in photoshop without revealing anything that looks like what I am certain I saw.

The twilight was very bright and by that time the head of the comet should have been about 30' above the cloud bank. I had another look through the binos after Noel and confirmed my earlier observation. There was no sign of a nucleus! We packed it in about 20 mins after my first sighting of the tail.

Conclusions. Either we packed up too early and the head was still behind the cloud bank (not likely going by the predicted position in relation to Mercury and the stars of Scorpius in the vicinity), or the tail is now the only part of the comet readily visible in bright twilight!

There was 86 years of observing experience standing on my rural driveway this morning, observing in close to ideal conditions, and yet we didn't sight the comet's head, and only one of us was sure that we could see the tail!

Best of luck over there. I'd love to be proved wrong, but I'm afraid It isn't looking good at the moment.

Cheers

Coops