The Great January Comet of 1910 (C/1910 A1): a key opportunity missed by New Zealand astronomers
Article
Drummond, John, Orchiston, Wayne, Brown, Carolyn and Horner, Jonathan. 2025. "The Great January Comet of 1910 (C/1910 A1): a key opportunity missed by New Zealand astronomers." Journal of Astronomical History and Heritage. 28, pp. 689-710. https://doi.org/10.3724/SP.J.1440-2807.2025.03.07
| Article Title | The Great January Comet of 1910 (C/1910 A1): a key opportunity missed by New Zealand astronomers |
|---|---|
| ERA Journal ID | 30599 |
| Article Category | Article |
| Authors | Drummond, John, Orchiston, Wayne, Brown, Carolyn and Horner, Jonathan |
| Journal Title | Journal of Astronomical History and Heritage |
| Journal Citation | 28, pp. 689-710 |
| Number of Pages | 22 |
| Year | 2025 |
| Place of Publication | Thailand |
| ISSN | 1440-2807 |
| Digital Object Identifier (DOI) | https://doi.org/10.3724/SP.J.1440-2807.2025.03.07 |
| Web Address (URL) | https://www.sciengine.com/JAHH/doi/10.3724/SP.J.1440-2807.2025.03.07 |
| Abstract | C/1910 A1 was one of the Great Comets of the twentieth century. Although it was widely observed from the Northern Hemisphere, it was first discovered by observers south of the Equator. The comet arrived just months before the widely anticipated apparition of Comet 1P/Halley and was significantly more spectacular. As a result, the two comets were confused, and many who, in later years, talked about how prominent Comet 1P/Halley was in 1910 were often remembering C/1910 A1. In this paper, we present the results of a detailed search through historical records and media publications in Aotearoa / New Zealand, to investigate how extensively C/1910 A1 was observed from New Zealand. We compare our results with observations reported for Comet 1P/Halley later in 1910, finding that surprisingly few observations of C/1910 A1 were made by New Zealand observers. We discuss cases where the comet was misidentified as being an early sighting of 1P/Halley and compare the observations made in New Zealand with international observations/records/accounts. We find that, although the Great January Comet of 1910 was observed from New Zealand, it was witnessed by few compared to other parts of the world, meaning that the apparition of C/1910 A1 was something of a missed opportunity for New Zealand astronomers. |
| Keywords | C/1910 A1 (the Great January Comet); comets; New Zealand; 1P/Halley |
| Contains Sensitive Content | Does not contain sensitive content |
| ANZSRC Field of Research 2020 | 510107. Planetary science (excl. solar system and planetary geology) |
| 510199. Astronomical sciences not elsewhere classified | |
| Byline Affiliations | University of Southern Queensland |
| Hunan University of Humanities, Science and Technology, China | |
| School of Science, Engineering and Digital Technologies |
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https://research.usq.edu.au/item/1013w0/the-great-january-comet-of-1910-c-1910-a1-a-key-opportunity-missed-by-new-zealand-astronomers
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