Orwell Astronomical Society (Ipswich)
Comet 240P NEAT, 25 November - 13 December 2025
Comet 240P/NEAT was discovered by Near Earth Asteroid Tracking (NEAT) on 07 December 2002. It has an orbital period of 7.61 years. It came to opposition on 22 November 2025, and will come to perihelion on 19 December 2025.
I imaged the comet on 25 November, when it was situated in the constellation Taurus. The object is notable because in late-September/early-October, the nucleus split into two components, easily seen in the following imge.
Observing under a clear sky, both heads of the comet were visible, the "B" head approximately three magnitudes fainter than the "A".
Nigel Evans