page_title: C/1807 R1
section_title: Discovery
hierarchical_section_title: C/1807 R1 / Discovery
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Entdeckungssituation des Kometen C/1807 R1 in der Abenddämmerung des 9.9.1807 gegen 17:50 GMT in Sizilien (Blick nach Westen über das Meer). Erstellt mit Stellarium 0.13.0English: Discovery situation of the comet C/1807 R1 in the evening twilight of 9 Sept 1807 around 5:50 pm GMT in Sicily (view towards West over the sea). Created with Stellarium 0.13.0
context_page_description: C/1807 R1, also known as the Great Comet of 1807, is a long-period comet. It was visible to naked-eye observers in the northern hemisphere from early September 1807 to late December, and is ranked among the great comets due to its exceptional brightness.
context_section_description: Its discovery is often credited to the Augustinian monk P. Reggente Parisi at Castrogiovanni in Sicily. He recorded observing the comet very close to the horizon in the early twilight of 9 September 1807, not far from the equally bright star Spica: at that time the planets Venus, Mars and Saturn were also near the comet. Moonlight interfered with observations for the following week and thanks to his favorable southerly location, Parisi might have been able to make his discovery several days before a number of other observers in Europe independently discovered the comet. 
  Orbital data points suggest that the comet should have been first discovered by the unassisted eye in the southern hemisphere several weeks before it became visible in the northern hemisphere; however there are no such historical reports. In Australia the comet should have been visible during all of August in the early evening twilight on the western horizon with a brightness approaching magnitude 1.
caption: Artist’s depiction of the western sky slightly after sundown on 9 September 1807 in Sicily (view looking west over the Mediterranean)
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