C/1760 A1

The Great Comet of 1760 was first seen on 7 January, 1760 by Abbe Chevalier at Lisbon. However, the perihelion of this comet had occurred on 17 December, 1759. It was observed until the 30th of that month by Charles Messier, who had first discovered the comet on 8 January, 1760 in Paris, by the sword of Orion. The comet was his third discovery and the comet was the 51st comet to have a calculated orbit. He observed the comet for a total of 6 days. As of June 2008 the comet was about 216 A.U. from the Sun. [NASA. [http://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=1760+A1&orb=1 JPL Small-body database browser] plot and approximate distance. (needs Java)] [NASA. [http://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/horizons.cgi?find_body=1&body_group=sb&sstr=C/1760%20A1 JPL HORIZONS current ephemeris] more accurate position, no plot.]

It approached to within approximately 0.0682 astronomical unit (AU) or 6.34 million miles. This is the 11th closest approach by a comet of all time. It had a Right Ascension of 7 hours 57 minutes and had a declension rate of -17.6 degrees. Messier gave the comet a magnitude rating of 2.0, making it easily visible to the unaided eye. Messier also gave the comet an elongation angle of 140 degrees. Messier came up against opposition from Navy astronomer Joseph Nicholas Delisle, who had employed Messier from October 1751, because Delisle would not publish the discovery Messier had made. This was in effect a continuation of the mistrust that had developed between Messier and Delisle because Delisle had been slow to publish work done by Messier in 1759; Messier had independently rediscovered Halley's Comet on 21 January, 1759 but because Messier had doubted the correctness of Delisle's path, Delisle instructed Messier to continue observing the comet and refused to announce his discovery. Delisle apparently later changed his mind and announced the discovery on 1 April, 1759, but other French astronomers discredited Delisle's claim, labelling the discovery as an April Fools joke. Deslisle retired in 1760.

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