How do I interpret the diagrams of the Hale-Bopp comet motion in the sky?

You simply have to locate the background constellation in the sky, and on the date you want to observe the comet, look at the diagram for the part of the curve with the 'tick mark' for that date, and that is the position of the comet relative to the background constellations in the plot.

In the above sample for Hale-Bopp, if you wanted to observe it on February 28th, you would look half-way between the Northern Cross (Cygnus) and the Great Square of Pegasus. Most magazines and newspapers publish similar charts.

Copyright 1997 Dr. Sten Odenwald

Return to Ask the Astronomer.