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(meteorobs) P/Encke in outburst? No!
Please be advised that 2P/Encke is not undergoing any sort of photometric
outburst at this time. Its current brightness is fully within expectations for
the current date. Most observers have been encountering considerable difficulty
in spotting this object up until now simply for want of dark enough skies. At
the present time the comet's coma subtends between 12'-20' (depending of the
observer reporting). With its integrated magnitude of around 7.3 at present
this makes for an object with a very low surface brightness and thus its
visibility/size/apparent magnitude is very sensitive to the brightness of the sky
background.
Most unfortunately, articles published earlier this year in various magazines
and websites regarding the comet's current apparition failed to take into
account that the coma would appear huge and bloated (and therefore seem very
faint) because of its proximity to Earth in October and November. The lack of
experience in observing comets on the part of these various author's is now all
too clear.
John Bortle
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