* Astronomy

Scottish astronomer discovers record haul of comets
The month that sees the end of British Summer Time brings views of a wide swath of the heavens that reaches from the best of our summer stars in the evening to the glorious winter's sky around Orion before dawn. We might also see all of the planets of the solar system, but the only comets on show are dim ones, nothing like the Comet McNaught of 2006-7, the most spectacular one in recent decades.
Its discoverer, the Scottish astronomer Rob McNaught, works in Australia and, after finding his 50th comet a month ago, has already pushed his tally to a world record of 52. Another record, this one for the discovery of supernovae in distant galaxies, has been claimed by the amateur astronomer Tom Boles of Coddenham in Suffolk. His total of 125 discoveries comfortably trumps the 121 found by the professional Fritz Zwicky before he died in 1974.

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