* * * * * 174P/Echeclus * * * * *

Year Mn Day    MM  Mag Ref Scope Pwr coma  DC tail p.a. Obs  Site
2006  2  4.21   S 14.3 HN  20.3T 133  0.6  4            GON  Pobladura de Luna, León
(Mountain location, very clear sky. Limiting stellar magnitude: 15.5.
Comparison stars taken from Henden photometry near HS Vir.)
2006  1  8.78   S 14.4 AU  40.0L 257  0.5  3            YOS  Ibaraki, Japan
(This object has been revealed to be a comet just before I left home for observation.
It was reported as 17.5 mag in IAUC 8656, but I received a report by Ken-ichi Kadota that this comet
is much brighter actually, 14.8 mag on Jan. 7.85 (UT). So I hurriedly added it to my target list.
This comet is farther than 13 A.U., but surprisingly, it is visible visually! Maybe it is the farthest
comet observed visually, isn't it? Before the observation, I have imagined that it would be sharply
and strongly condensed like 29P just after an outburst. However, on the contrary, it is very diffuse
actually. Round diffuse object like a planetary nebula, similar to Owl Nebula. Kadota reported that
the condensation became somewhat weaker on Jan. 8. Maybe the outburst has been already cooling down?)