Comet 71P/ Clark

With an orbital period of about 5.5 years, Comet 71P/ Clark is a short-period comet that is a member of Jupiter's "family" of comets. Normally a faint comet, it may reach 11th magnitude during a very favourable return, such as the one in 1995.

1995 Return


Comet 71P/ Clark. April 25, 1995
45 minutes exposure, Fuji Super HG II 400 film.
5" f/5 refractor at prime focus.

At magnitude 12.2, this was the faintest comet I had tried to photograph with the 5". The comet is indicated by the lines. The bright star in the image is the 2.1 magnitude star Nunki, or sigma sagittari.

2011 Return

The 2011 return was quite unfavourabe, with the comet being too close to the Sun for observation for several months during perihelion passage.


Comet 71P/ Clark. October 14, 2012
Combination of 5, 3 minute images, SBIG STL-1001E CCD.
20" f/6.8 Dall-Kirkham cassegrain at prime focus.