Comet 2P/Encke in the Evening Sky

This February, Comet 2P/Encke sweeps by the Circlet of Pisces asterism as the comet nears the sun along the western horizon. It’s easy to find in mid-February, as it appears inside a 5° circle centered on magnitude 4 Omega Piscium. It will be brightest late this month into the first part of March. 

The skychart above will help you find the comet. To help you locate the Circlet in the not-quite-dark twilight-sky of mid-February, note that a line from Mars to Venus will continue roughly to the Circlet.

TV/NP101 users are well advised to use a 31mm Nagler to help locate the comet. This scope/eyepiece combination will produce 4.5° true field-of-view to easily sweep this “dirty snowball” in the vicinity of Omega Piscium.