This is the big news of the week. Comet 17/P Holmes, has suddenly brightened by a significant magnitude. This comet, which usually is not visible to the naked eye, was discovered by Edwin Holmes (no relation) in 1892 while he was observing the Andromeda Galaxy. It has an eliptical orbit around our sun and makes a complete orbit once every seven years.
The comet is usually 25 000 times to dim to see with the naked eye, but since the 23rd October 2007, comet 17/P has brightened significantly. To put this into context, according to David Morrison of NASA Astrobiology Institute in Moffett Field, California, "This is equivalent to the planet Saturn suddenly becoming as bright as the Full Moon".
Now in anyone's book this is an exciting event according to the New Scientist magazine, "Comets do sometimes show extreme changes in brightness. They are thought to occur when the Sun's heat vaporises newly exposed ice on the comet, blasting dust off its surface. Sunlight reflecting off the dust increases the comet's brightness."
The comet can be found in the constellation Perseus.
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