C/1973 E1 (Kohoutek)

Common card · No. 490807

Comet Kohoutek (pronounced "ko-HU-tek" , or "ko-ho-tek" ), formally designated as C/1973 E1, 1973 XII and 1973f, is a comet that passed close to the Sun towards the end of 1973. Early predictions of the comet's peak brightness suggested that it had the potential to become one of the brightest comets of the 20th century, capturing the attention of the wider public and the press and earning the comet the moniker of "Comet of the Century". Although Kohoutek became rather bright, the comet was ultimately far dimmer than the optimistic projections: its apparent magnitude peaked at only −3 (as opposed to predictions of roughly magnitude −10), and it was visible for only a short period, quickly dimming below naked-eye visibility by the end of January 1974. The comet was discovered by and named after Luboš Kohoutek at the Hamburg Observatory on 18 March 1973; Kohoutek had been searching for Biela's Comet and had serendipitously discovered his eponymous comet while reviewing photographic plates...

Read on Wikipedia · Image NASA, Public domain