Reports from Geisei Observatory <July 17, 2008>

Photograph of C/2007 W1 (Boattini)

    I observed C/2007 W1 (Boattini), which has begun appearing in Cetus in the predawn sky. At a glance the coma appears very bright and firm, but the tail may be very faint or non-existent. This photograph was taken by our new 70cm reflector. Unlike the previous 60cm reflector, this 70cm telescope tracks the comet's motion automatically, which makes observation easier. As there is no drift of the star image, the position can be majored accurately. This comet will rise higher and become easier to observe. The photographic magnitude of the nucleus is 9 and rather faint, but visually it is 7th magnitude with the coma diameter measuring more than 5 minutes of arc. I will advise comet searchers to be cautious about misidentifying it as a new comet.