Re: Comet Pojmanski (C2006 A1)


"David Nakamoto" <res07oeg@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:hVnMf.2068$FE2.66@xxxxxxxxxxx
I think of comets like I think of deep sky objects. For starters, the
magnitude estimates are fraught with uncertainties. Is the 6.53 an
estimate of the brightness of the nucleus alone? Is it an estimate of the
total brightness of the object? If the latter, then what is the brightness
per unit are outside the nucleus? What is the brightness of the nucleus?
The coma? The tail? What kind of tail is it (gas or dust)? How long?
How much does its brightness taper off the farther it gets from the
nucleus/coma? And so on.

So teat it like M101 or any other object with a high magnitude estimate
but probably a lot fainter than that. And don't expect to see much beyond
the nucleus and perhaps the coma. And increase your chances by going to a
dark site, or at least take the usual precautions from suburbia; avoid
light shining directly on you and your equipment like the Bird Flu, and
position yourself and your equipment so you're not looking at the object
through the glow of a light that itself is shielded from your direct sight
(the usual precautions).

Since this comet is newly discovered, access recent ephemeredes from The
Usual Suspects (I like to link to the ephemeredes list from the comet
observer's website at http://www.cometobservation.com/). I also use
Starry Night Pro, but while I would not rely too much on the accuracy of
the ephemeredes it uses until more observations are in, they're usually
good enough to get you in the vicinity with a low power eyepiece. Also
remember this comet is now close by, relatively speaking, so its position
is shifting , perhaps not as fast as the moon, but if you're not
interpolating the coordinates correctly, you might be looking in the wrong
space.

Good Luck !

Clear and Steady Nights,
--- Dave Nakamoto
--
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Pinprick holes in a colorless sky
Let inspired figures of light pass by
The Mighty Light of ten thousand suns
Challenges infinity, and is soon gone

david.nakamoto@xxxxxxxxxxx


"Pippen" <not@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:Be-dnRMWIc_udpzZnZ2dnUVZ_s-dnZ2d@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
I'm trying to find Comet Pojmanski (C2006 A1)... My Starry Night
Enthusiast (SN) show the best time to view is around 5:40 AM in Denver
(actually just west of Denver). SN shows this comet as a 6.53 Mag. Is
this something I should expect to see with an ETX 125 or am I expecting
too much? I was hoping the tail would make it easy to find...

Thanks,

-p




Thank you for the information and the advice.

-p


.

Relevant Pages

  • Hubble Zooms in on Comet 17P/Holmes
    ... Hubble zooms in on heart of mystery comet ... The nucleus - the small solid body that is the source of the comet's ... the comet increased dramatically in brightness. ...
    (sci.space.news)
  • Re: Comet Pojmanski (C2006 A1)
    ... For starters, the magnitude ... brightness of the nucleus alone? ... Since this comet is newly discovered, access recent ephemeredes from The Usual ...
    (sci.astro.amateur)