Since comet Shoemaker-Levy collided with the planet Jupiter with stupendous force in 1994 there has been an upsurge of amateur interest in comets. Most comets are first discovered by amateur astronomers because so there are many amateurs looking for them, and techniques and instruments have improved dramatically in the past few years. This comprehensive book (with an accompanying CD-ROM) is at once a "primer" for comet hunters and a text for advanced amateurs and will thus appeal to a wide audience of amateur astronomers