A comet no one thought would be bright enough to see with a small telescope until June has suddenly "turned on," and much sooner than expected.

For new comets -- those that visit the inner solar system once, never to return, or at least not to return for hundreds of thousands of years -- sudden brightening is not all that unusual. Their outer crusts are comprised of layers of volatile ices laid down during the birth of the solar system.

They are like snowflakes swept clear of the Suns heat -- though not its gravity -- in the frozen wastes of space. Once they draw nearer to the Sun, however, the intensifying heat vaporizes the fluffier surface ices in a process called sublimation and the comet seems to abruptly ignite, even though it may lie beyond Jupiters orbit.

Comet LINEARs sudden flare-up in brightness may be short lived, however. As of April 1, its magnitude stood at 7.3, but by the following evening it had diminished to 8.5. The magnitudes of new comets are notoriously difficult to predict, as was seen with Comet Kohoutek in early 1973 and Comet Wilson in 1987, just to name two examples. Still, it might be a good idea to keep your eye on this one, in case it decides to brighten again.

Currently, the comet is in the constellation Lepus the Hare in the southwestern evening sky (see todays map). In a 4-inch (101-millimeter) or larger telescope, use low-to-medium magnification. Look for a tenuous cottony ball of light surrounding a tiny star-like point. LINEAR continues its south-southwesterly trek throughout the end of the month.