Comet 220P/McNaught Brightens 600-Fold in Second August Outburst

1 articles · Updated · Mashable India · Aug 10

Comet 220P/McNaught flared again in August 2026, brightening about 600-fold and giving skywatchers a second chance to catch the object after its earlier surge.
The new outburst follows a far larger late-May eruption, when the Jupiter-family comet jumped from 18th magnitude to as bright as 8.2—an increase of up to 8,000 times.
TRAPPIST-North observations linked that earlier burst to a possible fragmentation event, with dust production dropping sharply within days.
The comet, discovered in 2004 by Robert H. McNaught, orbits the Sun every 5.5 years and passed perihelion on June 14 at 1.6 AU, outside Mars' orbit.