Gail S. Cleere

Comet Halley was in the news in the late 1980s as it made its way back to the sun, passing earth closely enough to be seen. It wasn't as spectacular as other years but was visible with binoculars or a telescope. Edmond Halley discovered that the sightings of 1531, 1607 and 1682 were the same comet and predicted that it would return in 1758-59. It was the comet seen by King Harold in 1066 and by others in different years in history.

The United States Naval Observatory issued this publication to inform the public about comets in general and the coming sighting, giving advice for sky watching, with the best times listed in both hemispheres. There are numerous illustrations, photos and sky maps along with a bibliography of comet materials from general to scholarly.

If you missed this event, Comet Halley will be back in 2061 and will hopefully be much more exciting!… (mehr)