Comet Envy

As I mentioned in the book, when Leary died the greatest comet in twenty years appeared in the sky. This was known as the "great comet of 1996", or C/1996 B2 Hyakutake to it's friends. This was a nice touch on the part of the heavens, considering Leary's obsession with the comet Kahoutek whilst in jail.

Well, the comet that was in the sky when Robert Anton Wilson died last month puts Leary's comet to shame. It went by the name of C/2007 P1 McNaught, the brightest comet for over forty years, and was soon given the name of - yes - "the great comet of 2007" by Space.com.

Have a look at it, it's a magnificent thing.

http://zuserver2.star.ucl.ac.uk/~apod/apod/ap070115.html

http://zuserver2.star.ucl.ac.uk/~apod/apod/ap070118.html