Reports from Geisei Observatory<December 16, 2002>

• Photograph of C/2001 RX14(LINEAR)
C/2001 RX14 has brightened and was magnitude 11 visually. The predicted positions are provided in OAAComet Section's Comet Year Book. It is visible slightly north of the zenith before morning twilight. In a 60cm reflector photograph it shows a 10'-long tail. It is a beautiful sight.

C/2001 RX14(LINEAR)
5-minute exposure from 3:32 on December 16, 2002
60cm reflector

• Photograph of C/2002 X5
This is a comet just discovered by Mr. Tetsuo Kudo on December 14. In the 20cm refractor at 60x it shows a large coma 7' across with a short faint tail. Around the same time, Mr. Hirohisa Sato in Sukagawa estimated it to be at 8.2 by his 70mm binoculars. It will rapidly brighten and get as close as 0.1 A.U. from the sun in January.

The following is the result of observation at Geisei by the 60cm reflector:

C/2002 X5
2002UT         R.A. (2000)    Decl.         m1
Dec. 15.78306  16 00 48.33   +44 20 51.0    7.9   372

C/2002 X5
One-minute exposure from 3:47 on December 16, 2002
60cm reflector