#JeanPons made his #firstcometdiscovery, jointly attributed to #CharlesMessier, on 11 July 1801. He appears to have used #telescopesandlenses of his own design; his #GrandChercheur (Great Seeker) seems to have been an instrument with large aperture and short focal length, similar to a #cometseeker. However, he was not an especially diligent recorder of his observations, and his notes were often extremely vague.