歷史今天:海爾波普彗星被發現
【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.
【中文譯文】
海爾波普彗星（ 編號爲C/1995 O1）被公認爲是二十世紀最廣泛關注的彗星，也是近幾十年裏最明亮的彗星之一。這顆彗星肉眼可見的記錄爲18個月，是1811年大彗星時長紀錄的兩倍。
1995年7月23日海爾波普彗星被發現在距太陽很遠的位置，預計它接近地球時將會持續明亮很長一段時間。雖然預測彗星在不同角度的亮度是非常困難的， 但是當1997年4月1日海爾波普彗星通過近日點時，達到甚至超過了大多數的預測。彗星被稱爲1997年大彗星。
