Long-period comet that was perhaps the most observed comet of the twentieth century, and one of the brightest in decades. It was visible to the naked eye record time of 18 months.
The comet was discovered on 23 July 1995 at a very great distance from the Sun (about 7.2. E.), allowing to assume that it will be quite bright and when approaching the Ground. And although the brightness of comets is very difficult to predict with any degree of accuracy, this comet has met or exceeded expectations, when it passed perihelion on 1 April 1997. It is sometimes called "the Great comet of 1997"
The appearance of comet Hale - BOPP also caused confusion among the people, which was not observed for a long time. Wide publicity was the rumor that the comet is flying a spaceship. These stories became the impetus for a mass suicide among followers of a new religious movement "Gates of Paradise".
Translated by «Yandex.Translator»
