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DN,
I asked the question to David Seargent 2 days ago about Ikeya-Seki compared to McNaught, and he mentioned he still rates Ikeya-Seki the most impressive comet he has seen because of the brilliant tail. David has seen all the comets since the early 60's.
The only comets at the same level I have seen that could compare with McNaught are Hale-Bopp and Hyakutake, this how I would sum-up:
1. Hyakutake - Fantastic gas tail, the detail in binoculars was amazing. Amazing with naked eye seen against a very dark sky.
2. Hale-Bopp - The coma and first section of the tail were brilliant (I saw the comet from the US when at its best). Very well located for viewing and absolutely spectacular in binoculars (problably the best comet I have seen through binoculars/telescope). However, tail was bright only for a 5-10 degrees (the rest was averted vision stuff).
3. McNaught - Had a brighter/larger tail than either of the 2 comets. More impact to the naked eye, especially with the beautiful vertical plume extending into the horizontal 'auroral' section. Impressive daylight visibility. The only con was that the coma was very low in the sky (although the negative magnitude made up a little for that). Can't wait to get out and see it again!
Terry
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