C/1846 J1 (Brorsen)
C/1846 J1 is a long period comet discovered by Theodor Brorsen on 1 May 1846. It is the parent body of the weak meteor shower December sigma Virginids.
Observational history
The comet was discovered on May 1, 1846, by Theodor Brorsen. He described it as a large round nebulosity without tail. An independent discovery was done later the same day by Moritz Ludwig George Wichmann. The comet upon discovery was near the border of the constellations Pegasus and Vulpecula. The comet approached Earth at a distance of on May 6.The comet was observed with naked eye on 13 May, after the Moon had set, and continued to be visible until 20 May. A faint tail was observed. Due to slow communications, George Phillips Bond discovered the comet on May 20 unaware of the previous discoveries. In June the comet became progressively harder to observe as the solar elongation became smaller. It was last observed on June 15, located low near the horizon.