历史今天:海尔波普彗星被发现

【英文原文】

Comet HAle-Bopp

Comet Hale-Bopp (formally designated C/1995 O1) was arguably the most widely observed comet of the twentieth century, and one of the brightest seen for many decades. It was visible to the naked eye for a record 18 months, twice as long as the previous record holder, the Great Comet of 1811.

Hale-Bopp was discovered on July 23, 1995 at a great distance from the Sun, raising expectations that the comet would brighten considerably by the time it passed close to Earth. Although predicting the brightness of comets with any degree of accuracy is very difficult, Hale-Bopp met or exceeded most predictions when it passed perihelion on April 1, 1997. The comet was dubbed the Great Comet of 1997.

【中文译文】

海尔波普彗星（ 编号为C/1995 O1）被公认为是二十世纪最广泛关注的彗星，也是近几十年里最明亮的彗星之一。这颗彗星肉眼可见的记录为18个月，是1811年大彗星时长纪录的两倍。

1995年7月23日海尔波普彗星被发现在距太阳很远的位置，预计它接近地球时将会持续明亮很长一段时间。虽然预测彗星在不同角度的亮度是非常困难的， 但是当1997年4月1日海尔波普彗星通过近日点时，达到甚至超过了大多数的预测。彗星被称为1997年大彗星。