Hale-Bopp was a pussy comet compared to Haley's.

I've seen both and Halley's wasn't anywhere near as big or bright as Hale-Bopp. In fact, Halley's comet is way down the list in term of magnitude (brightness) compared to a lot of other comets.

Halley's comet had a magnitude of 2.4. For reference, the lower the number, the higher the magnitude of brightness.

Halley's Comet (1986): Magnitude 2.4
https://scx2.b-cdn.net/gfx/news/hire...leys-comet.jpg

Hale-Bopp (1996): Magnitude -0.8
https://www.augustachronicle.com/gcd...3-e0af7390.jpg

Comet McNaught (2007): Magnitude -5.5
https://cdn.britannica.com/47/153647...nuary-2007.jpg

Comet Ikeya-Seki (1965): Magnitude -10
https://cdn.britannica.com/46/123346...-Seki-1966.jpg

I've never seen a comet and I can't see this one. I think it's behind some high-rises that are west of my house.

I’m gonna be honest and say that this is absolutely shocking to me. You seem like an intellectually curious fellow and Hale-Bopp was visible for a long time. It was also plainly visible, no binoculars or long exposure photography needed.

Hale-Bopp was 1997.

Hale–Bopp became visible to the naked eye in May 1996.

Honestly, I'm kind of lazy about stuff like this, and I don't know why. I'm interested in things like comets and meteor showers, but I live in the middle of a big city, and I'd likely have to drive at least 45 minutes each way to get myself to any kind of view. So I inevitably shrug and say, "maybe next time".

If, after that 45 minute drive, you're not out in the middle of nowhere, where light pollution from the west is no longer visible on the horizon, you may as well stay at home. You won't be able to see anything.

If I drive 45 minutes east, then there'll be nothing east of me, but Denver west of me. So that's no good.

If I drive 45 minutes west, then I'd probably be close to the Continental Divide. I'd have a lot of dark west of me, but until I get to the top, the horizon is really, really close. If I drove to the top of the divide and then found a way to get off the highway, I bet I could get a really good view. But that's a pretty unpleasant drive that I usually try to avoid.

Hale-Bopp sounds familiar, is that the one with the cult that poisoned themselves?

That's correct. Heaven's Gate was the cult in question.

Kind of a tangent, but the song "Last Chance to Evacuate the Earth Before It Is Recycled" from Porcupine Tree is named after and contains a recorded passage from the Heaven's Gate leader.

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