Astronomy every Thursday
A superb timelapse video created by Honor Wheeler of Comet C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan - Atlas on the 12th Oct 2024.
[video width="640" height="426" mp4="https://crayfordmanorastro.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/08ab415e-bd36-42bb-9ac2-d38fdf342734.mp4"][/video]
Four members of CMHASD; John Archer, Gary Hunt, Jo Southgate and Honor Wheeler met up at Top Dartford Road at around 18:30 to see if they could spot comet C2023 A3 Tsuchinshan - ATLAS on the 12th Oct 2024. The rain cleared just in time and the sky was clearing of cloud as they set up. It took about 25 minutes looking but in the end they spotted the comet nucleus with a pair of 8x42 binoculars in the orange glow of the sunset i.e. in the Western sky approx 10 to 20° above the horizon :-)
Below are some fantastic images of the comet taken by Honor. These images were also the 1st ones of the comet to be put on the British Astronomical Association (BAA) website - well done Honor!
A great image capturing Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS) by member Jim Burchell from Swanley.
Jim said ''I took this image on the evening of 15th of May when the Comet was in the constellation of Virgo with my Seestar S50. As you see the Comet is showing a small tail....''
C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS) is a comet from the Oort cloud and was discovered by the Purple Mountain Observatory in China on 9 January 2023 and independently found by ATLAS South Africa on 22 February 2023.
Jim was the 1st member of CMHASD to image the comet - Well done Jim!
Image acquired using a Seestar S50: 48 X 10 second stacked images.
Another fantastic image of Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks captured on the 27th March 2024 by Jim Burchell using his Seestar S50 smart scope. The image consists of 24 x 10 second images stacked.
For more information about the comet 12P Pons-Brooks check out https://ras.ac.uk/news-and-press/news/12ppons-brooks-how-and-when-see-devil-comet
Two fantastic images of Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks taken on the 15th & 18th March 2024 by member Jim Burchell. The images were taken using a Seestar S50 smartscope. On both nights Jim had a very small amount of time to capture the comet due to clouds rolling in. The image taken on the 15th is a stack of 6x10 second images and the image on the 18th is a stack of 18x10 second images.
Comet 12P/Pons Brooks on 15th March 2024
Comet P12/Pons Brooks on 18th March 2024
For more information about the comet and how to locate it check out https://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/advice/comet-12p-pons-brooks
Superb image of Comet Lemmon C/2023 H2 taken by member Richard Bohner on the 11th Nov 2023 from Arizona, USA. Richard used the following to acquire his image - Canon 5D Mk IV on a Celestron 8” SCT. Magnification about 100X. 60 seconds exp. At ISO 10K.
The comet was discovered on April 23, 2023 with a robotic 1.5m reflector telescope of the Mount Lemmon Survey, hence the name Comet Lemmon (C/2023 H2). That program is part of the Catalina Sky Survey based at Stewart Observatory's Catalina Station near Tucson, Arizona, which combs the sky each night in search of new comets and asteroids. The comet is just one of an incredible 50,000 asteroids and comets discovered by the Mount Lemmon Survey, making it one of the most prolific minor planet-discovering surveys currently operating.
During mid-November the comet was moving across the western sky from the constellation Hercules through Aquila just below the Summer Triangle asterism.
C/2023 P1 (Nishimura) is a long-period comet discovered by Hideo Nishimura on 12 August 2023 and member Martin Crow imaged it on the 20th August 2023. At the time of its discovery, the comet was in the constellation of Gemini and shining at magnitude +10.4.
Image details: 5x60sec exposures. 235mm diameter SCT @ f5.4, SX694 mono CCD.
A rather splendid image of Comet C/2023 E1 (ATLAS) taken by CMHASD trustee and secretary Dr. Mike Rushton on the 12/13th July 2023 in Ursa Minor.
Mike wrote ''This is C/2023 E1 (ATLAS) last night. Approx Mag 14.5 with a greenish coma. The bright star in the image is Mag 7 and the limiting Mag 17.5. Perihelion was 1/7/23 and closest to earth will be on 18/8/23. This was a 20 min exposure with my eVscope.'' Imaging started just before midnight on 12/7/23 (23:57 BST).
Comet C/2023 E1 (ATLAS) was spotted on the 1st March 2023 by the NASA funded Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS). At the time, the comet was a +19th magnitude object moving through the constellation of Virgo.
On July 1 this Comet ATLAS reached perihelion, its closest approach to the Sun.
To date the comet has now moved into Draco and will move into Cepheus towards its closest approach to Earth mid-August. On August 18 this visitor to the inner Solar System will only be 3 light-minutes or so from our planet.
Based on its inclination to the ecliptic plane (38 degree) and orbital period of about 85 years C/2023 E1 (ATLAS) is considered a Halley-type comet. Though the comet currently has a 'C' designation for a long period comet versus periodic comet; that will probably change as 85 years is much less than the 200 year orbital period cut off defining the 2 categories of comet.
Below is the report from SETI/UNISTELLAR Mike received back after submitting his imaging data.
Mike said ''I have had the photometry back and it was brighter than I thought at Mag 12.8. See the report from seti below. The little image in that report is stacked on the moving comet. The original image I sent was stacked on the stars.''
For more information: https://www.space.com/comet-c2023-e1-atlas-little-dipper-how-to-see
The latest image of the Green Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) that is currently gracing our skies by member George Buckberry. The photo was taken on the 14th February 2023 by George.
''Having spent months climbing up out of Corona Borealis and drifting past the Big and Little Dippers, like a rollercoaster car reaching its highest point, Comet C/2022 E3 ZTF has now gone 'over the top' of its path across the northern sky and is falling south, fading in brightness and shrinking in size as it drops towards Taurus. For northern hemisphere comet chasers and skywatchers E3’s show is almost over.'' ref https://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/advice/comet-c-2022-e3-ztf/
So well done George for capturing the Comet, you did well to get it as it's fading fast!
George has written on the image below of how he acquired the photo and the location of the star Aldebaran to the comet. Aldebaran (Alpha Tauri) is a bright red giant star in the constellation of Taurus.
Member and trustee Martin Crow captured the Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) on the morning of the 18th January 2023 at 03:20am. The ion tail of the comet can be seen emerging at around the 2 o’clock angle in the photos.
