This is the Official GeoCities Comet Hale-Bopp Web Site. This site is dedicated to bring you up to date info and pictures on Comet Hale-Bopp.

On July 23, 1995, an unusually bright comet outside of Jupiter's orbit (7.15 AU!, that's 664.95 million miles or 1072.5 million kilometers) was discovered independently by Alan Hale, New Mexico and Thomas Bopp, Arizona. The new comet, designated C/1995 O1, is the farthest comet ever discovered by amateurs and appeared 1000 times brighter than Comet Halley did at the same distance. Normally, comets are inert when they are beyond the orbit of Jupiter, so it has been speculated that Comet Hale-Bopp is either a rather large comet or experienced a bright outburst (or both). T this point the comet is as bright as it will ever be in its orbit of the sun, and has become the brightest comet since Comet West in 1976. From Hubble Space Telescope images, the comet's diameter has been determined to be about 40 km. The Pic du Midi Observatory has ascertained from their observations that the comet's rotation rate is 11.4 hours.

The comet is now reaching the end of it's glorious trek through the solar system but we can still see it from earth, but only in the southern hemisphere. I am afriad that there are no more star charts to help you find it, sorry.

• Mark Gransden Image of Hale-Bopp (August 4, 1997)
• Mark Gransden Image of Hale-Bopp (August 3, 1997)
• David Jones Image of Hale-Bopp (August 2, 1997)
• Two Mark Gransden Images of Hale-Bopp (August 2,1997)
• Mark Gransden Image of Hale-Bopp (July 23, 1997)
• Two European Southern Observatory Images of Hale-Bopp (July 19, 1997)
• Three Mark Gransden Images of Hale-Bopp (July 19, 1997)
• Frank Feleppa Image of Hale-Bopp (June 18, 1997)
• Frank Tornyai Image of Hale-Bopp (June 12, 1997)
• Frank Tornyai Image of Hale-Bopp (June 11, 1997)
• Frank Tornyai Image of Hale-Bopp (June 7, 1997)
• Michael Horn Image of Hale-Bopp (June 7, 1997)
• Two Keith Vincent Images of Hale-Bopp (June 5, 1997)
• Four Zelko Karlovic Images of Hale-Bopp (June 3, 1997)
• Noeleen Lowndes Image of Hale-Bopp (June 1, 1997)
• Zelko Karlovic Image of Hale-Bopp (June 1, 1997)
• Michael Horn Image of Hale-Bopp (June 1, 1997)
• Michael Horn Image of Hale-Bopp (May 31, 1997)
• Two Noeleen Lowndes Images of Hale-Bopp (May 26, 1997)
• Two Gibbs, Matesich Images of Hale-Bopp (May 22, 1997)
• Three Ian Griffin Images of Hale-Bopp (May 21, 1997)
• Noeleen Lowndes Image of Hale-Bopp (May 20, 1997)
• Vodniza, Quinones Image of Hale-Bopp (May 19, 1997)
• Three Tim Forrest Images of Hale-Bopp (May 16, 1997)
• David Renneke Image of Hale-Bopp (May 16, 1997)

The US Naval Observatory has provided a wonderful online program that will give you a text printout telling you where to find the comet from your location, where ever it may be. This is now useful only for southern hemisphere locations; the comet is no longer visible from the northern hemisphere.