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More updates...
Haakon Dahle from Norway just spotted the comet on January 3 with the naked eye and estimated the coma as mag 1.5. Although his latitude is optimal for viewing the comet, it was still very low in bright twilight. A number of observers also described the coma as extremely condensed and blazingly bright. Michael Jaeger, also on January 3, made a magnificent image clearly showing a small brilliant coma and intense dust tail sitting amongst distant clouds.
An article I read by noted comet researcher, Joe Marcus, is predicting that forward scattering will enhance the brightness by 2 magnitudes Jan 13.0-15.5. I don't think there is much doubt the comet will go negative magnitude, its now a question of how negative!
Scott, wish you well. I haven't checked up its position but I Mercury might be a good test target to practice on.
Terry
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