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Comet ISON reached perihelion on Thanksgiving Day at about 1:45 p.m. EST. As it approached the sun, the comet seemed to fade and disintegrate prompting me to rewrite my StarWatch article for December 1 with the first sentence saying “Comet ISON disintegrated as it approached its closest distance to the sun on Thanksgiving Day—puff—gone.” Most astronomers thought that it was a goner, but several hours later Comet ISON emerged somewhat disheveled, but back from the dead. Now astronomers are asking if there is enough material left in the comet to allow it to still “strut its stuff” in our morning sky over the next several weeks. No one seems to know the answer as of November 29. I have now changed my StarWatch article back to its original content and I am waiting like everyone else for the verdict. Images from SOHO, the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory... |
Comet Lovejoy sprouts a nice tail even under the light of a third quarter moon. Originally predicted to be only a telescopic object, Lovejoy suffered an outburst which brought it virtually to naked eye visibility from rural locals; however, the brightness of the gibbous moon spoiled the show. Now that the moon is waning and past third quarter, it will be interesting to see how a darker sky affects Comet Lovejoy's visibility. The limiting magnitude of this image is about +12.5. Lovejoy was captured with a Canon 60D camera using a 70-200mm Canon zoom lens at an EFL of 160mm. The camera and lens were fixed to a German equatorial mount. The picture was exposed for 60 seconds at F/3.5, ASA 800, with a sensor temperature of 4000 K. Image by Gary A. Becker on November 25 at 5:30 a.m. from Coopersburg, PA... |
Lovejoy map by Gary A. Becker using Software Bisque's The Sky... |
Comet ISON’s rapid disintegration after its perihelion passage on Thanksgiving Day is aptly shown in this SOHO, Solar and Heliospheric Observatory space photography composite. Its breakup was a great disappointment to the astronomical community which predicted the possibility of a great comet once it rounded the sun. |
Giving the Finger to Astronomy is not as bad as it may seem. Here are a set of handy angles created by fingers and hands to measure the angular separation of objects in the sky. Keep in mind that these angles are only approximate. Not all hands and fingers are created equal. |