A comet dazzled the sky for the past few months, C/2011 L4 PANSTARRS. PANSTARRS was discovered under a comet search campaign conducted by The Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System (Pan-STARRS). 

The newfound Comet ISON has the potential to be one of the brightest ever seen when it streaks through the inner solar system this November, but whether it will live up to the hype is anybody's guess.

Falling in toward the sun from the frigid, outer reaches of the solar system, Comet PANSTARRS takes center stage in the evening skies over Earth this month. 

Stop and take a minute to check out the sky tonight. A comet is making a visit to our cosmic neighborhood this month, and if you’re lucky, you’ll be able to see it without the help of expensive astronomical equipment.

Named after the International Scientific Optical Network, Comet ISON — officially designated "C/2012 S1 (ISON) — has the potential to be the most spectacular comet of the century. But it could also prove to be a dud. A critical moment will be perihelion passage, when the comet comes closest to the sun...

2013 could turn out to be a comet bonanza. No fewer than three of these long-tailed beauties are expected to brighten to naked eye visibility. Already Comet C/2011 L4 PANSTARRS has cracked that barrier. Sky watchers in Australia have watched it grow from a telescopic smudge to a beautiful binocular sight low above the horizon at both dusk and dawn.

Comet Pan-STARRS C/2011 L4, discovered by the Pan-STARRS 1 telescope on Haleakala in June 2011, is expected to become visible to the naked eye in the Northern Hemisphere in March.

Comet PANSTARRS won’t pass by Earth until this spring, but it’s already showing some unusual properties. Researchers have observed a bright halo of material surrounding the comet, a signal that it’s actively producing dust. This is great news for backyard astronomers, since dust and ice are what contribute to comets’ beautiful, long tails! 

When we think of lemons, our thoughts might turn towards a frosty cold summer drink or a frothy, tasty pie. However, in this case the Lemmon is a public outreach observatory and the treat is a newly discovered comet. At the Mt. Lemmon SkyCenter, Alex Gibbs of the Mount Lemmon Survey discovered a moving target on March 23, 2012.

Right now, within the orbit of Mars and about 113 million miles away from the Sun, an icy traveler from the Oort Cloud is headed our way.

With a nucleus roughly two miles across, Comet ISON may become the "Comet of the Century" when it reaches the inner solar system later this year. Amateur astronomers Vitali Nevski and Artyom Novichonok discovered Comet C/2012 S1 near Kislovodsk, Russia, on September 21, 2012; the comet was named ISON for the 0.4-meter telescope that discovered it, part of the International Scientific Optical Network.

Comet PANSTARRS won’t pass by Earth until this spring, but it’s already showing some unusual properties. Researchers have observed a bright halo of material surrounding the comet, a signal that it’s actively producing dust. This is great news for backyard astronomers, since dust and ice are what contribute to comets’ beautiful, long tails!