C/1948 V1: Wikis

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**C/1948 V1 (Eclipse Comet)**
Discovery
Discovery date:	November 1, 1948
Alternate designations:	Eclipse Comet, 1948 XI, 1948 V1
Orbital characteristics ^A
Epoch:	2432840.5
Aphelion distance:	4167 AU
Perihelion distance:	0.135 AU
Semi-major axis:	2083 AU
Eccentricity:	0.99994
Orbital period:	95097 a
Inclination:	23.1°
Last perihelion:	October 27, 1948
Next perihelion:	97045

The Eclipse Comet of 1948, formally known as C/1948 V1, was an especially bright comet discovered during a solar eclipse on November 1, 1948. Although there have been several comets that have been seen during solar eclipses, the Eclipse Comet of 1948 is arguably the best-known; it was however, best viewed only from the Southern Hemisphere.

When it was first discovered during totality, it was already quite bright, at magnitude -2; as it was near perihelion, this was its peak brightness.^[1] Its visibility during morning twilight improved as it receded outward from the Sun; it peaked near zero magnitude, and at one point displayed a tail roughly 30 degrees in length, before falling below naked eye visibility by the end of December.^[1]