Posted on 06/07/2010 1:05:41 PM PDT by TaraP
COMET McNAUGHT: A fresh comet is swinging through the inner solar system, and it is brightening rapidly as it approaches the sun. Presenting, Comet McNaught (C/2009 R1):
Michael Jäger of Stixendorf, Austria, took the picture on June 6th using an 8-inch telescope. The comet's green atmosphere is larger than the planet Jupiter, while the long willowy ion tail stretches more than a million kilometers through space. These dimensions make the comet a fine target for backyard telescopes.
Comet McNaught can be found low in the northeastern sky before dawn gliding through the constellation Perseus. It is brightening as it approaches Earth for a 1.13 AU close encounter on June 15th and 16th. Currently, the comet is at the threshold of naked eye visibility (5th to 6th magnitude) and could become as bright as the stars of the Big Dipper (2nd magnitude) before the end of the month. Estimates are uncertain, however, because this comet is a newcomer to the inner solar system, and thus somewhat unpredictable. Readers are encouraged to wake up before dawn and monitor developments.
Tanks sheep....no...armor wool....tough and gentle...
I actually served in 3rd armor for a while...I now hate tanks....lol
BTW, nice dog in your profile!
“Major” (the GSD in the profile) says:
“Tank Ewe!”
..- /.-./ .- - /./.-../-.-./- - - /- - /.
5/30/2010 at 2215hrs, M51 obtained with a Canon 40D attached to a equatorial fork mounted 10" Schmidt Cassegrain telescope. This was a series of 35x120 second exposures W/8 darks, @ISO 800 - A 6.3 focal reducer was used in the optical train along with an Astonomik LP filter. All calibrated aligned and stacked with DSS.
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