Comet Lulin Is Moving Closer To Earth

goran72 writes "The comet is swinging around the Sun and approaching the Earth. The photogenic Lulin has a bright tail and an 'anti-tail.' At its closest approach in February, Comet Lulin is expected to brighten to naked-eye visibility, reaching a magnitude of six."

Comments

Mag 6 is *not* naked eye visible

[petes_PoV]

unless you live in the very darkest regions, utterly devoid of streetlighting.

I really wish people wouldn't talk up comets. They almost never live up to the hype - partly because the commentators are either hopelessly optimistic or over-enthusiastic. Then when the "average" person sticks their head out at night - hoping to see something spectacular, they are gravely disappointed.

This kind of thing damages the scientific credibility as a whole and turns people off the idea of beleiving scientists: "remember that comet they told us about - what a bust that was, I guess name of global catastrophe is the same - waste of time".