Comet 12P Pons-Books (the Devil Comet) that may be observable during the April 8 2024 solar eclipse has been observed for more than 600 years. The 1457 pass was recorded and a drawing made (left) published by Hartmann Schedel (1440-1514), more details in link. The right is a photograph capture of the comet using a large telescope (.6 M) on March 20, 2024 aligned to similar orientation. In 1457 there were no telescopes so the drawing derived from visual observations likely in a dark sky. 12P Pons-Brooks has manifested outbursts during this passage and similar outbursts have been recorded over three prior passes in 1800s and 1900s. Now with the telescopes and technology available very detailed observations are underway and these will disclose the underlying processes of this comets activity. The drawing from 1487 and the photo from 2024 bookends the evolution of our investigations of this comet over the centuries.

iTelescope T11

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