Comet comments?

[logi_cal869]

I see it every day with the WH media kit photo releases...

I thought the media were supposed to stop using the releases out of protest of the restrictions for openly photographing Uranus?

Eh, just keep your head down.

[Hardraade]

Is on?

[Lonesome in Massachussets]

Best link I’ve found.

http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/home/232699581.html

ISON is brightening smartly. It has not yet hit perihelion, it is still approaching the sun for the first, and probably only, time. As it passes the sun, it will subjected to enormous heat and substantial tidal forces. It doesn’t have enough self gravity to remain intact, (it’s nearest approach is 0.4 times the Roche Limit), and it’s tensile strength under extreme heating may not be enough to resist the tidal forces, which will be most extreme at perihelion. If the sun merely boils off a mess of material it will be spectacular when it reappears in the early morning around December 1. If it disintegrates more or less completely, it will probably be a fizzle. Only time will tell.

You may be able to spot it in the day time near perihelion without optical aids, if you use a street light or utility pole to block the sun and but keep the comet in your field of view.

After perihelion approach it will more or less retrace its orbit (its hyperbolic orbit is almost a straight line towards and away from the sun near perihelion) so it will again be visible only in the early hours of dawn after perihelion.

Good luck.

[Alas Babylon!]

Do you know where I can find the proper coordinates for where it should be? I’m interested in the compass point in degrees and the altitude.

I was taught in the military that a way to make rough measure of altitude is to hold your hand out at arm length making the “Just hang loose” sign in Hawaiian (fist with thumb and pinkie extended) and putting the thumb on the horizon and the pinkie would be at approximately 20 degrees. Flipping your hand by putting your thumb up while keeping your pinkie on the same 20 degree mark now adds another 20 degrees and therefore your thumb is at the 40 degree mark. You can keep doing this until you reach directly overhead which is 90 degrees. We used this in the field to judge the height of aircraft.

[fwdude]

If it isn’t clearly viewable without magnification, I consider it a dud.

[messierhunter]

It looks great in an 8" scope. I took a look at it a week ago, but the weather hasn't played nice this week. Shot this image of it just after the outburst. Can't wait to try again when the weather's clear, but I may have to wait until after perihelion.

[messierhunter]

One stop shop for all your comet coordinate needs:
http://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/horizons.cgi

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

Hale-Bopp was stunning, though.

My son (who was 7 at the time) and I would brave the cold and set up the telescope to view Hale-Bopp. I still can't how excited he was about astronomy then. It ignited a fire in him for all things scientific that burns to this day. He is currently working in the genetics field. Love that kid.

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

That would be "I still can't believe how excited he was".
Sheesh. Coffee time.