Reports from Geisei Observatory<July 12, 2000>

• C/1999 S4(LINEAR)
I captured LINEAR at 3 am this morning under very favorable conditions. I used Tri-X film for a 10-minute guided exposure with the 60cm reflector. The total magnitude was 6.6 and the tail was 55' long in the west. It was clearly seen in the 8cm finderscope at 20x.

Will the comet brighten by 1-1.5 magnitudes in late July? Will the tail become 2-3° long? By a short-time exposure the coma is elongated in the south-north direction, perpendicular to the direction of the sun, as seen in the previous photographs.

C/1999 S4(LINEAR)
10-minute exposure on Tri-X film at 3 am on July 12, 2000
60cm reflector at Geisei Observatory