Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Something larger than Jupiter has appeared beyond Earth’s orbit—and I captured it with my backyard telescope. This is Comet 220P/McNaught, a Jupiter-family comet that underwent a remarkable outburst and became dramatically brighter than expected. My real telescope images reveal its brilliant central region, enormous glowing coma, unusual sunward-facing structure and a long, faint tail extending across space.
But there is an important distinction: the solid nucleus of 220P/McNaught is not larger than Jupiter. The extraordinary size comparison refers to the comet’s extended coma—the enormous cloud of gas and dust surrounding its nucleus.
I originally went outside to photograph another impressive object, Comet 10P/Tempel 2, a roughly 10-kilometer-wide periodic comet. Instead, 220P/McNaught completely surprised me. It appeared significantly brighter than expected and displayed structure that I had never personally observed around a comet before.
In this video, I will show you:
☄️ My real telescope pictures of 220P/McNaught
☄️ The enormous coma surrounding the comet
☄️ Its faint but surprisingly long comet tail
☄️ The unusual material visible ahead of the nucleus
☄️ Where 220P/McNaught is located beyond Earth’s orbit
☄️ How its coma compares with the size of Jupiter
☄️ My images of Comet 10P/Tempel 2
☄️ Real-time telescope footage of both comets
☄️ Why cometary outbursts can cause sudden brightening
220P/McNaught was discovered by Australian astronomer Robert H. McNaught and travels around the Sun approximately once every 5.5 years. During its 2026 appearance, the comet underwent a major outburst and became thousands of times brighter, bringing it within reach of smaller telescopes and, temporarily, binocular observations.
Comet 10P/Tempel 2 is another Jupiter-family comet that returns approximately every five years. Its solid nucleus is substantially larger than that of many periodic comets, although its visible coma appeared much more compact in my telescope images.
These are my actual backyard telescope observations—not observatory publicity images or an AI reconstruction.
🔴 Subscribe to Ray’s Astrophotography:
youtube.com/@RaysAstrophotography?sub_confirmation=1
🔴 Watch live telescope observations on Cosmic Ray LIVE:
youtube.com/@cosmicraylive?sub_confirmation=1
Join the Rayliens and Cosmic Rays as we investigate comets, asteroids, unusual objects, astronomy discoveries, space weather and the changing night sky.
Important clarification: “Larger than Jupiter” refers to the estimated extent of the comet’s surrounding coma, not the diameter of its solid nucleus.
#220PMcNaught #CometMcNaught #10PTempel2 #Comet #Astronomy #Astrophotography #SpaceNews
Something larger than Jupiter has appeared beyond Earth’s orbit—and I captured it with my backyard telescope. This is Comet 220P/McNaught, a Jupiter-family comet that underwent a remarkable outburst and became dramatically brighter than expected. My real telescope images reveal its brilliant central region, enormous glowing coma, unusual sunward-facing structure and a long, faint tail extending across space.
But there is an important distinction: the solid nucleus of 220P/McNaught is not larger than Jupiter. The extraordinary size comparison refers to the comet’s extended coma—the enormous cloud of gas and dust surrounding its nucleus.
I originally went outside to photograph another impressive object, Comet 10P/Tempel 2, a roughly 10-kilometer-wide periodic comet. Instead, 220P/McNaught completely surprised me. It appeared significantly brighter than expected and displayed structure that I had never personally observed around a comet before.
In this video, I will show you:
☄️ My real telescope pictures of 220P/McNaught
☄️ The enormous coma surrounding the comet
☄️ Its faint but surprisingly long comet tail
☄️ The unusual material visible ahead of the nucleus
☄️ Where 220P/McNaught is located beyond Earth’s orbit
☄️ How its coma compares with the size of Jupiter
☄️ My images of Comet 10P/Tempel 2
☄️ Real-time telescope footage of both comets
☄️ Why cometary outbursts can cause sudden brightening
220P/McNaught was discovered by Australian astronomer Robert H. McNaught and travels around the Sun approximately once every 5.5 years. During its 2026 appearance, the comet underwent a major outburst and became thousands of times brighter, bringing it within reach of smaller telescopes and, temporarily, binocular observations.
Comet 10P/Tempel 2 is another Jupiter-family comet that returns approximately every five years. Its solid nucleus is substantially larger than that of many periodic comets, although its visible coma appeared much more compact in my telescope images.
These are my actual backyard telescope observations—not observatory publicity images or an AI reconstruction.
🔴 Subscribe to Ray’s Astrophotography:
youtube.com/@RaysAstrophotography?sub_confirmation=1
🔴 Watch live telescope observations on Cosmic Ray LIVE:
youtube.com/@cosmicraylive?sub_confirmation=1
Join the Rayliens and Cosmic Rays as we investigate comets, asteroids, unusual objects, astronomy discoveries, space weather and the changing night sky.
Important clarification: “Larger than Jupiter” refers to the estimated extent of the comet’s surrounding coma, not the diameter of its solid nucleus.
#220PMcNaught #CometMcNaught #10PTempel2 #Comet #Astronomy #Astrophotography #SpaceNews
