Comet Lovejoy Archives

November 18, 2013December 23, 2015 by Bob King

Comet ISON Grows Wings; Comet Lovejoy, a Fountain

Comet ISON on Nov. 17 with a tail nearly 8 degrees long and small, highly condensed coma! It looks more like a jet contrail. Credit: Michael Jaeger

Wonderful photos of Comets ISON and Lovejoy with their swollen comas and developing tails have appeared on these pages, but recently, amateur and professional astronomers have probed deeper to discover fascinating dust structures emanating from their very cores. Most comets possess a fuzzy, starlike pseudo-nucleus glowing near the center of the coma. Hidden within this minute luminous cocoon of haze and gas lies the true comet nucleus, a dark, icy body that typically spans from a few to 10 kilometers wide. Comet ISON’s nucleus could be as large as several kilometers and hefty enough (we hope!) to survive its close call with the sun on Nov. 28.

Sketch using Photoshop of the inner region of Comet Lovejoy's coma showing the false nucleus and the curious dust fountain observed on Nov. 13 in a 15-inch (37-cm) telescope. Credit: Bob King. The dust fountain or plume captured on Nov. 12 next to the false nucleus deep within the coma of Comet Lovejoy. Credit: Luc Arnold — Sketch using Photoshop of the inner region of Comet Lovejoy’s coma showing the false nucleus and the curious dust fountain observed on Nov. 13 in a 15-inch (37-cm) telescope. Credit: Bob King. At right the same plume photographed on Nov. 12 with north up and east to the left. Credit: Luc Arnold

Last Wednesday morning Nov. 13 when calm air allowed a sharp view inside Comet Lovejoy’s large, 15-arc-minute-wide coma I noticed something odd about the false nucleus at low magnification, so I upped the power to 287x for a closer look. Extending from the fuzzy core in the sunward direction was a small cone or fountain-shaped structure of denser, brighter dust shaped like a miniature comet. It stretched eastward from the center and wrapped slightly to the south. Usually it’s harder than heck to see any details within the fuzzy, low-contrast environment of a comet’s coma unless that comet is close to Earth and actively spewing dust and ice. Lovejoy scored on both.

Negative image taken Nov. 14 of Lovejoy's nucleus and dust fan. Credit: Dr. P. Clay Sherrod — Negative image taken Nov. 14 of Lovejoy’s nucleus and dust fan. North up, west to the right. Credit: Dr. P. Clay Sherrod

By good fortune, Dr. P. Clay Sherrod of the Arkansas Sky Observatories, USA, and Luc Arnold of Saint-Michel-l’Observatoire, France, shared images they’d made at high magnification of the identical feature right at the same time as my own observation. There’s no doubt that what we saw was a jet or combined jets of dust and vapor blasting from Lovejoy’s true nucleus. Jets are linear or fan-shaped features and carry ice, dust and even snowballs from inside the nucleus out into space. They typically form where freshly-exposed ice from breaks or fissures in the comet’s crust vaporizes in the sun’s heat.

What I wouldn’t give to see one up close. Wait – we can. Take a look at the photo of Comet 103P/Hartley made during NASA’s EPOXI flyby mission in November 2010. Notice that most of Hartley’s crust appears intact with the jets being the main contributors to the dust and gas that form the coma and tail.

Multiple jets were actively spewing ice and dust when NASA's EPOXI mission zoomed by Comet Hartley 2 in November 2010. Credit: NASA — Multiple jets were actively spewing ice and dust when NASA’s EPOXI mission zoomed by Comet Hartley 2 in November 2010. The fuzzy spots are balls of fluffy snowballs measuring between 1 inch and 1 foot across. Credit: NASA

Spotting a jet usually requires good seeing (low atmospheric turbulence) and high magnification. They’re low-contrast features but worth searching for in any bright comet. Jets often point toward the sun for good reason – the sunward side of the comet is where the heating is happening. Activity dies back as the comet rotates to face away from the sun during the night and early morning hours. By studying the material streaming away from a comet via jets, astronomers can determine the rotation period of the nucleus.

Nightly images of Comet Hale-Bopp made March 24-30, 1997 by Brad D. Wallis of the Cassini imaging team at JPL. The photos were assembled into this animation by Sky & Telescope — Nightly images of Comet Hale-Bopp’s rotating nucleus and spiraling jet made March 24-30, 1997 by Brad D. Wallis of JPL. The photos were assembled into this animation by Sky & Telescope

Sometimes material sprayed by jets expands into a curved parabolic hood within the coma. This may explain the wing-shaped structures poking out from Comet ISON’s coma seen in recent photos. Possibly the Nov. 13-14 outburst released a great deal of fresh dust that’s now being pushed back toward the tail by the ever-increasing pressure of sunlight as the comet approaches perihelion.

The inner coma of Comet Hale-Bopp developed a striking series of hoods in March 1997 when a dust jet spewed material night after night from the comet’s rotating nucleus. The animation captures garden sprinkler effect beautifully. Since the nucleus spun around every 11 hours 46 minutes, multiple spiraling waves passed through the coma in the sunward direction. To the delight of amateur astronomers at the time, they were plainly visible through the telescope.

Processed images showing a possible jet next to Comet ISON' nucleus as well as the new wing-like coma structures on Nov. 17, 2013. The jet's position angle or PA is 150 degrees or southeast of the nucleus. Credit: Denis Buczynski and Nick James — Processed images showing a possible jet extending southeast (PA 150 degrees) of Comet ISON’s nucleus as well as the new wing-like hoods on Nov. 17, 2013. Credit: Denis Buczynski and Nick James of the BAA

When examining a comet, I start at low magnification and note coma shape, compactness and color as well as tail form and length and details like the presence of streamers or knots. Then I crank up the power and carefully study the area around the nucleus. Surprises may await your careful gaze. If Comet ISON does break up, the first sign of it happening might be an elongation or stretching of the false nucleus. If it’s no longer a small, star-like disk or if you notice a fainter, second nucleus tailward of the main, the comet’s days may be numbered.

Symmetrical "wings" photographed branching from Comet ISON's coma on Nov. 15. At right, the photo has been specially processed to show the structure more clearly. Credit: Erik Bryssinck — Another view of the symmetrical “wings” photographed branching from Comet ISON’s coma on Nov. 15. At right, the photo has been specially processed to show the structure more clearly. Credit: Erik Bryssinck

November 12, 2013December 23, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

New Timelapse of Comets ISON and Lovejoy

Comet R1 Lovejoy imaged on November 10th by astrophtographer Justin Ng. (Credit: Justin Ng).

Comet 2012 S1 (ISON) is just 16 days away from its close encounter with the Sun and is now inside the orbit of Venus, at under 103,000,000 km (64,000,000 miles) away from the Sun. This new timelapse by award-winning photographer Justin Ng from Singapore shows the journey of both ISON and Comet 2013 R1 (Lovejoy), taken on November 11, 2013. The video covers 50 minutes of imaging time for ISON and 90 minutes of imaging time for Lovejoy.

As you watch the video of each, don’t worry – the comets and their tails are not fizzling out! This actually reflects the reduced visibility of the comets as the sky was gradually becoming brighter with daybreak. Additionally, Justin cautions that in the timelapse, both comets appear to be moving especially fast because of smaller field of view and long exposure.

On November 4, there were indications of a possible ion tail emerging from Comet ISON, and this comet’s growing dust tail now stretches to more than a full moon’s diameter. “Comet ISON is now plunging towards the Sun with 2 long tails at a magnitude of around +7 and it is visible in small scopes and strong binoculars,” writes Justin.

Comet ISON flies in front of constellation Virgo this week (from our vantage point on Earth) and it is expected to grow some 2.5 times brighter before it passes by the bright star Spica in Virgo on November 17 and 18.

“Comet Lovejoy just passed into the constellation Leo with a magnitude of around +6 and it’s an easy binocular object,” said Justin. “R1 Lovejoy will remain well placed at 50 to 60 degrees above the northeastern horizon before sunrise through this week for observers from near the Equator.”

Keep tabs on Justin’s work on his website , G+ page, and Facebook.

Keep tabs on the latest on Comet ISON at the Comet ISON Observing Campaign website.

Timelapse of Comet ISON and Comet Lovejoy from Justin Ng Photo on Vimeo.

November 11, 2013December 23, 2015 by David Dickinson

Tracking Comet C/2013 R1 Lovejoy through November

Comet R1 Lovejoy passes the Beehive Cluster: (Credit Damian Peach).

Tired of comets yet? Right now, northern hemisphere observers have four (!) comets within range of binoculars in the dawn sky. Comet C/2012 S1 ISON, is, of course, expected to dazzle towards month’s end. Comet 2P/Encke is an “old standby,” with the shortest orbital period of any comet known at 3.3 years, and is making a favorable appearance this Fall. And comet C/2012 X1 LINEAR added to the morning display recently, reaching about +8^th magnitude in an unexpected outburst…

But the brightest and best placed comet for morning viewing is currently Comet C/2013 R1 Lovejoy. Shining at +6^th magnitude, R1 Lovejoy just passed into the constellation Leo after a photogenic pass near the Beehive Cluster (M44) in Cancer last week. We caught sight of R1 Lovejoy a few mornings ago, and it’s an easy binocular object, looking like a fuzzy unresolved globular cluster with barely the hint of a tail.

If the name sounds familiar, that’s because the comet was discovered by Australian observer Terry Lovejoy, the prolific discoverer of four comets, including the brilliant sungrazing Comet C/2011 W3 Lovejoy that survived its 140,000 kilometre perihelion passage above the surface of the Sun on December 16th and went on to dazzle southern hemisphere observers in late 2011 and early 2012.

Comet R1 Lovejoy as imaged by Rob Sparks (@HalfAstro) from Tucson, Arizona near the Beehive cluster. (Credit: Rob Sparks). — Comet R1 Lovejoy as imaged by Rob Sparks (@HalfAstro) from Tucson, Arizona passing near the Beehive cluster. (Credit: Rob Sparks).

Terry discovered R1 Lovejoy on September 7^th, 2013 while it was still at magnitude +14.4. The comet is expected to top out at +4^th magnitude in late November as it passes 61.4 million kilometres from Earth on November 19^th and heads for perihelion at 0.877 AUs from the Sun on December 25^nd, 2013. Comet R1 Lovejoy is on a 64 degree orbit highly inclined to the ecliptic, and has a period roughly 7,000 years long. The last time R1 Lovejoy graced Earthly skies, our early ancestors still thought copper smelting was a pretty hip idea!

The orbital path of Comet R1 Lovejoy through the inner solar system. (Credit: NASA/JPL Solar System Dynamics explorer).

And unlike comets Encke and ISON that are plunging near the Sun, Comet R1 Lovejoy never gets closer than 19 degrees elongation from our nearest star in late December. It also reaches a maximum northern declination of 43 degrees on November 28^th, the same day that ISON reaches perihelion. For mid-latitude northern hemisphere observers, R1 Lovejoy will remain well placed at 35 to 45 degrees above the northeastern horizon about an hour before sunrise through late November.

Here are some key dates to aid you in your quest to spy Comet R1 Lovejoy in late November:

November 11^th: Passes near +4.5 Kappa Leonis.

November 14^th: Passes from Leo into the constellation Leo Minor & passes near the +5.3 star 20 Leonis Minoris.

November 16^th: Passes near the +5^th magnitude stars 28, 30, and 34 Leonis Minoris.

November 18^th: Passes into the constellation Ursa Major.

November 19^th: Passes near the +4.8 magnitude star 55 Ursae Majoris & +5.3 magnitude star 57 Ursae Majoris.

November 19^th: Closest to Earth, at 0.4 AUs distant.

The celestial path of Comet R1 Lovejoy spanning November 11th to the 30th. (Created using Starry Night Education software).

November 21^st: Passes into the constellation Canes Venatici.

November 22^nd: Passes near the +6^th magnitude star 4 Canum Venaticorum & the +4.2 magnitude star Chara (Beta Canum Venaticorum).

November 24^th: Passes near the Sunflower Galaxy (M63).

November 27^th: Passes into the constellation Boötes.

December 1^st: Passes near +3.5 magnitude star Nekkar (Beta Boötis).

December 4^th: crosses into Corona Borealis.

Note that passes on the list above denote passages closer than one degree of Comet R1 Lovejoy near bright objects.

Perihelion for the comet is December 25^th at 0.877 AU, and its closest approach to Earth is November 19^th. On this date, it will also be moving at its maximum apparent speed as seen from Earth, covering about 3 degrees of the sky every 24 hours, or the angular span of the Full Moon every 4 hours.

United Kingdom observer Pete Lawrence imaged Comet R1 Lovejoy this past weekend from his backyard garden using a 4-inch apochromatic refractor and a Canon 40D DSLR:

Comet R1 Lovejoy as imaged by Pete Lawrence on November 9th. (Credit: Pete Lawrence).

He also made his first confirmed binocular sighting of Comet ISON using a pair of 15×70 binocs, noting to Universe Today that “ISON’s head appears to be small and stellar compared to Lovejoy’s extended coma, which is obvious in binoculars, and also brighter!”

It’s worth noting that all four of these morning comets are on separate orbital paths, and only seem to be in the same general region of the sky as seen from our Earthly vantage point… and none of them are passing near the Earth!

This week is also a good time to hunt for comets in the pre-dawn sky for another reason: the Moon reaches Full this coming weekend on Sunday, November 17^th. After this week, it will start to creep into the morning sky and interfere with deep sky observations for the next two weeks.

It’s also interesting to note that amateur observers discovered two more faint comets this past weekend. Though comets C/2013 V3 Nevski and C/2013 V2 Borisov aren’t slated to be anything spectacular, that brings the number of amateur discoveries to 13 for 2013. Are amateur comet hunters mounting a comeback?

In this age of automated surveys, the question is often raised as to whether amateurs can still discover comets. Keep in mind, Terry Lovejoy found Comet R1 Lovejoy with a medium-sized 8-inch Schmidt Cassegrain reflecting telescope… the age of amateur comet hunters seemes far from over in 2013!

November 7, 2013December 23, 2015 by Bob King

Comet ISON Heats Up, Grows New Tail

Two new tail streamers are visible between Comet ISON's green coma and bright star near center. in this photo taken on Nov. 6. They're possibly the beginning of an ion tail. Click to enlarge. Credit: Damian Peach

I’m starting to get the chills about Comet ISON. I can’t help it. With practically every telescope turned the comet’s way fewer than three short weeks before perihelion, every week brings new images and developments. The latest pictures show a brand new tail feature emerging from the comet’s bulbous coma. For months, amateur and professional astronomers alike have watched ISON’s slowly growing dust tail that now stretches nearly half a degree or a full moon’s diameter. In the past two days, photos taken by amateur astronomers reveal what appears to be a nascent ion or gas tail. Damian Peach’s Nov. 6 image clearly shows two spindly streamers.

Early detection of ISON's possible ion tail on Oct. 31 by amateur astronomer Efrain Morales Rivera in a 12-inch telescope. — *Early detection of ISON’s possible ion tail on Oct. 31 by amateur astronomer Efrain Morales Rivera in a 12-inch telescope.*

A picture of the comet two days earlier on Nov. 4 also shows new tail structures. Credit: Justin Ng — *The comet on Nov. 4 also shows the new tail structures extending farther from the coma. Credit: Justin Ng*

Ion tails are composed of gases like carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide blown into a narrow straight tail by the solar wind and electrified to fluorescence by the sun’s ultraviolet light. Being made of ions (charged particles), they interact with the sun’s wind of charged particles. Changes in the intensity and direction of the magnetic field associated with sun’s exhalations kink and twist ion tails into strange shapes. Strong particle blasts can even snap off an ion tail. Not that a comet could care. Like a lizard, it grows a new one back a day or three later.

*Comet ISON plunges sunward across Virgo in the coming days. Watch for it low in the eastern sky shortly before the start of dawn. Click to enlarge and print for outdoor use. Stellarium*

A fresh forked tail isn’t ISON’s only new adornment. Its inner coma, location of the bright “false nucleus”, is becoming more compact, and the overall magnitude of the comet has been slowly but steadily rising. Two mornings ago I pointed a pair of 10×50 binoculars ISON’s way and was surprised to see it glowing at magnitude 8.5. Things happen quickly now that the comet is picking up speed While it appeared as little more than a small smudge, any comet crossing into binocular territory is cause for excitement. Other observers are reporting magnitudes as bright as 8.0. Estimates may vary among observers, but the trend is up. Seiichi Yoshida’s excellent Weekly Information about Bright Comets site predicts another half magnitude brightening over the next few days. You can use the map here to spot it in your own glass before the moon returns to the morning sky.

Photo taken through the TRAPPIST 60-cm telescope using a narrowband CN (390 nm) filter shows two active jets in ISON's inner coma (right) and a broad dust tail at left. Credit: Cyrielle Opitom, TRAPPIST team — False color photo taken with the TRAPPIST 60-cm telescope using a narrowband CN (390 nm) filter at 8:45 Universal Time Nov. 5 shows two active jets (small double-plume) in ISON’s inner coma (right) and the dust tail at left. Field of view is 5×5 arc minutes. North is up, east to the left. Credit: Cyrielle Opitom, TRAPPIST team

But wait, there’s more. Emmanuel Jehin, a member of the TRAPPIST ( TRAnsiting Planets and PlanetesImals in Small Telescopes) team, a group of astronomers dedicated to the detection of exoplanets and the study of comets and other small solar system bodies, reports a rapid rise in ISON’s gas production rate in the past several days. They’ve increased by a factor of two since Nov. 3. Could the spike be connected to the development of an ion tail? Jehin and team have also recorded two active jets coming from the comet’s nucleus using specialized filters. Dust production rates however have remained flat.

*The Comet ISON Observing Campaign is both terrestrial and celestial. Nine different NASA and ESA spacecraft, eight of which are shown here, have observed comet ISON so far. Credit: NASA/ESA*

Casey Lisse of the Comet ISON Observing campaign (CIOC) reports that the Chandra X-ray Observatory just became the 9th spacecraft to image the comet . More details and photos should be available soon. The campaign predicts the comet will peak in brightness between -3 to -5 magnitude when it zips closest to the sun on Nov. 28. Want to ride alongside the comet during its passage through the inner solar system? Click on this awesome, interactive simulator.

*Hubble Space Telescope image of comet C/1999 S4 (LINEAR) that disintegrated around July 23, 2000. Credit: NASA/ESA*

Because ISON is a fresh-faced visitor from the distant Oort Cloud that will soon face the full fury of the sun, speculation of its fate has ranged across the spectrum. Everything from breakup and dissolution before perihelion to surviving intact trailing a spectacular dust tail. The comet is currently approaching the 0.8 A.U. mark (74.4 million miles / 120 million km) when previous comets C/1999 S4 LINEAR in 2000 and C/2010 X1 Elenin in 2011 crumbled to pieces and vaporized away. Will ISON have the internal strength to pass the test and venture further into the solar boil? Should it survive, it faces a formidable foe – the sun. Both the intense solar heat and gravitational stress on the comet’s nucleus could easily tear it apart. If this happens a few days before perihelion we’ll be left with little to see, but if ISON busts up a day or two after perihelion, watch out baby. When the comet reappears in the morning sky, it may be missing its head but make it up for the loss with a spectacular tail of fresh dust and ice many degrees in length. This is exactly what happened to Comet C/2011 W3 (Lovejoy) in December 2011. After its close graze with the home star, the nucleus disintegrated, producing a striking tail seen by skywatchers in the southern hemisphere.

Pictures of Comet C/2011 W3 Lovejoy on Dec. 22, 2011 after perihelion passage. Its head was very tiny and faint with a long tail. Credit: Chris Wyatt — *Pictures of Comet C/2011 W3 Lovejoy on Dec. 22, 2011 after perihelion passage. Will ISON be a repeat? Credit: Chris Wyatt*

The final scenario sees Comet ISON pushing past all barriers intact and ready to put on a splendid show. Whatever happens, I suspect we’re in for surprises ahead. For a more detailed analysis of these possibilities I invite you check out Matthew Knight’s blog on the CIOC website.

November 1, 2013April 8, 2018 by Nancy Atkinson

Morning Comets Continue to Dazzle in New Images, Timelapses

Comet Lovejoy on November 2, 2013, as seen from Singapore. Credit and copyright: Justin Ng.

While many are anticipating seeing Comet ISON, there’s more in the sky these days than just one comet. There are actually four comets now in the skies in the mornings — in addition to ISON, there’s comets 2013 R1 Lovejoy, 2P/Encke and 2012 X1 LINEAR! Unfortunately, none of these are visible to the naked eye — yet anyway.

Here are some great recent images and video of these comet taken by amateur astrophotographers. Above is Comet Lovejoy, just taken by Justin Ng from Singapore . “Comet Lovejoy will share the same part of the sky as Comet ISON this month and it presents a cool astrophotography opportunity for skywatchers and astronomers,” Justin told Universe Today via email. “This image is a result of stacking 9 images together and each image was captured using a 3 inch telescope at 5 minutes exposure time for about an hour before dawn.”

Comet 2P/Encke on October 30, 2013. The coma is partially obscuring the small barred spiral galaxy NGC 4371. Credit and copyright: Damian Peach.

A gorgeous shot of Comet Encke by Damian Peach. “The fine narrow ion tail is very nicely defined which has recently developed,” Damian said via email.

Below is Damian’s image of Comet Lovejoy. “Looks as though a disconnection event may have occurred within Lovejoy’s gas tail,” Damian said. “Note the broad fan shaped condensation around half way along the tail.”

Comet 2013 R1 Lovejoy on Oct 31, 2013. Credit and copyright: Damian Peach.

Here are two great timelapses of Comet ISON! The first is from Justin Ng from Singapore, taken on October 27:

Journey of Comet ISON on 27 October 2013 from Justin Ng Photo on Vimeo.

And this one is from Maik Thomas/NOVAlapse Timelapse Recordings:

Short Animation of Comet ISON – C/2012 S1 from NOVALAPSE Timelapse Recordings on Vimeo.

A recent look at ISON from Efrain Morales with black & white matched with a negative view:

Comet ISON C/2012 S1 On October 31st, 09:17-34 UTC. Coma much denser now around the nucleus and possibly both tails (Ion,Dust) on negative image (lower right) 17 x 1 minute exposures. Credit and copyright: Efrain Morales/Jaicoa Observatory — Comet ISON C/2012 S1 On October 31st, 09:17-34 UTC. Coma much denser now around the nucleus and possibly both tails (Ion, Dust) on negative image (lower right) 17 x 1 minute exposures. Credit and copyright: Efrain Morales/Jaicoa Observatory

A nice shot of Comet Lovejoy nearby in the sky to the bright binary star system Procyon in Canus Minor:

Procyon and Comet Lovejoy in the morning sky on October 31, 2013, from Arizona. Credit and copyright: Robert Sparks.

If you want to try and see these comets for yourself (good astronomy equipment needed) check out our article on how to see these four morning comets.

Want to get your astrophoto featured on Universe Today? Join our Flickr group or send us your images by email (this means you’re giving us permission to post them). Please explain what’s in the picture, when you took it, the equipment you used, etc.

October 30, 2013December 23, 2015 by Bob King

Four Comets Haunt the Halloween Dawn! Here’s How to See Them

No fewer than four bright-ish comets greet skywatchers an hour before the start of dawn. From upper left counterclockwise: C/2013 R1 Lovejoy, 2P/Encke, C/2012 X1 and ISON. Credits: Gerald Rhemann, Damian Peach, Gianluca Masi and Gerald Rhemann

Get your astronomical trick-or-treat bags ready. An excursion under the Halloween morning sky will allow you fill it in a hurry — with comets! We’ve known for months that ISON and 2P/Encke would flick their tails in the October dawn, but no one could predict they’d be joined by Terry Lovejoy’s recent comet discovery, C/2013 R1 (Lovejoy), and the obscure C/2012 X1 (LINEAR). The last surprised all of us when it suddenly brightened by more than 200 times in a matter of days. Almost overnight, a comet found on precious few observing lists became bright enough to see in binoculars. Now comet watchers the world over are losing sleep to get a glimpse of it.

Rarely are four comets this bright in the same quadrant of sky. This map shows the sky facing east about two hours before sunrise on Oct. 31. Notice that three stars are labeled "Beta". These are (from top) Beta Cancri, Beta Leonis and Beta Coma Berenices. We'll use these three stars and the planet Mars to hone in on the comets' locations in the maps below. Stellarium — Rarely are four comets this bright in the same quadrant of sky. This map shows the sky facing east about two hours before sunrise on Oct. 31. Take note of the three stars are labeled “Beta”. These are (from top) Beta Cancri, Beta Leonis and Beta Coma Berenices. We’ll use these three stars and the planet Mars to hone in on the comets’ locations in the maps below. Stellarium

Since it’s unusual to have four relatively bright comets in the same chunk of sky at the same time, you don’t want to miss this opportunity. Now that the moon has dwindled to the slightest crescent, this is THE time to hunt for these ghostly apparitions before dawn.

etailed (updated) map showing Comet Lovejoy's progress across Cancer in the coming days. It passes very close to the Beehive Cluster on Nov. 6-7. Click for a larger version you can print and use under the stars. All dates are at 6 a.m. CDT; north is up and west to the right and stars are shown to mag. 5. All closeup charts created with Chris Marriott's SkyMap software — Detailed (updated) map showing Comet Lovejoy’s progress across Cancer in the coming days. It passes very close to the Beehive Cluster on Nov. 6-7. Click for a larger version you can print and use under the stars. All dates are at 6 a.m. CDT; north is up and west to the right and stars are shown to mag. 5. All closeup charts created with Chris Marriott’s SkyMap software

Brightest of the bunch at magnitude 8 and your best bet to see in a standard pair of 50mm binoculars is Comet Lovejoy. Using the maps, look for a round, fuzzy spot with a brighter center not far from the bright star Procyon in Canis Minor. In the coming days, Lovejoy will brighten by an additional 2 to 3 magnitudes as it trucks across Cancer headed toward the Big Dipper. This is one to watch. Lovejoy will likely reach naked eye brightness by mid-November. Small telescope users can see the comet with ease but its developing gas tail is still to faint to spot visually.

Comet Encke drops below Leo and into Virgo over the next two weeks. Your guide star Beta Leo is at upper right. Click to enlarge. — *Comet Encke drops below Leo and into Virgo over the next two weeks. Your guide star Beta Leo is at upper right. Stars to mag.8. Click to enlarge.*

Comet Encke treks around the sun every 3.3 years. Sometimes it’s well placed for viewing and sometimes not. Because of its short period, dedicated comet watchers meet up with it a half dozen or more times during their lives. This apparition is a favorable one with the comet well-positioned in the east at dawn near peak brightness. Current estimates place it magnitude 7.5-8 with only the wispiest of tails. Like Lovejoy, 50mm binoculars under a dark sky should nab it.

A week before Encke reaches its peak magnitude of 6 or 7 at perihelion on Nov. 21, it chases the into the glare of morning twilight. If you want to see this comet, you’ve got about 2 weeks of viewing time left. Make sure to set up in a place with an open view to the east-southeast or you’ll find it hidden by the treeline.

Animation from images taken Oct. 25-28 of comet C/2012 X1 (LINEAR) showing its rapidly expanding coma in the wake of an eruptive event in its icy crust. Click image to animate. Credit: Gianluca Masi — Animation from images taken Oct. 25 and 28 of comet C/2012 X1 (LINEAR) showing its rapidly expanding coma in the wake of an eruptive event in its icy crust. Click image to animate. Credit: Gianluca Masi

Comet C/2012 X1 would have deprived us of a unique sight had it followed the rules. Instead, an eruption of fresh, dust-laden ices from its surface blasted into space to form a gigantic glowing sphere of material that vaulted the comet’s magnitude from a wimpy 13.5 to a vol-luminous 7.5. That’s a difference of 6 magnitudes or a brightness factor of 250 times!

Outbursts of this consequence are rare; the best example of a similar blow-out happened in 2007 when Comet 17P/Holmes cut loose and brightened by half a million times from magnitude 17 to 2.8 in just under two days.

C/2012 X1 (LINEAR) hovers low in the northeast in Coma Berenices near Beta. Because it's much further from Earth than the other 3 comets it moves more slowly across the sky. Click to enlarge. — C/2012 X1 (LINEAR) hovers low in the northeast in Coma Berenices near Beta. Because it’s much further from Earth than the other three comets, it moves more slowly across the sky. It has a close conjunction with the brilliant star Arcturus in mid-November. In this map, north is at top left and west to top right. Stars to mag. 8. Click to enlarge.

As with any explosion, the cloud of debris around C/2012 X1 continues to expand. Presently measuring a healthy ~8 arc minutes in diameter (1/4 the size of the full moon), the comet will almost certainly continue to grow and fade with time. Catch it now with binoculars and small telescopes before its veil-like coma thins to invisibility. Like Encke, X1 LINEAR requires an open eastern horizon and best viewed at the start of dawn. Make it the last comet on your observing list after Lovejoy, Encke and ISON.

Mars and several other moderately bright stars in Leo will guide us to Comet ISON in the next week or two. Click to enlarge. — *Mars and several other moderately bright stars in Leo will guide you to Comet ISON in the next week or two. Stars to mag. 10. Click to enlarge.*

Ah, ISON. Halloween morning wouldn’t be complete without a visit to this year’s the most anticipated comet.. If it can hold itself together after a searing graze of the sun on November 28, the comet will undoubtedly become a most pleasing sight during the first three weeks of December. Right now it’s a little behind schedule on brightness, but don’t let that worry you – its best days are still ahead.

*One of the finest pictures to date of Comet ISON by ace astrophotographer Damian Peach taken on Oct. 27.*

Of our four morning treats, Comet ISON is currently the faintest at around magnitude 9.5. Observers with binoculars in the 70-100mm range will see it under dark skies but most of us will need a 6-inch or larger scope at least until mid-November. That’s when ISON’s expected to brighten to magnitude 6, the naked eye limit. Just before it slips into the solar glare, ISON could reach 3rd magnitude around Nov. 21, normally an easy catch with the naked eye, but low altitude will hamper the view.

So open your bag wide tomorrow before dawn and keep it open the next few mornings. Trick or treat!

October 28, 2013December 23, 2015 by Nancy Atkinson

Weekend Comet Bonanza!

Color image of Comet ISON on October 27, 2013. Credit and copyright: Damian Peach.

Astrophotographers were out in full force this weekend to try and capture the bonanza of comets now visible in the early morning skies! You’ll need a good-sized telescope to see these comets for yourself, however, but with the Moon now waning means darker skies and better observing conditions. Above is an absolutely gorgeous image of Comet ISON taken by Damian Peach. See below for more images of not only Comet ISON, but also Comet Encke, Comet Lovejoy and Comet LINEAR — now in outburst.

In fact, one of our “regular” contributors, John Chumack, captured all four comets in one morning, on Saturday October 26!

Four comets captured in one morning! Clockwise from top left: Comet ISON 2012 S1; Lovejoy C/2103 R1;, 2P ENCKE, Linear 2012 X1. Credit and copyright: John Chumack/Galactic Images.

Here’s what John said about his Comet ISON image: “The tail extends off the frame it is at least 20 arc minutes long now and the coma is still around 3-4 arc minutes in diameter. The comet is looking good at about 12th magnitude and continues to slowly brighten, just 30 more days to perihelion — closest point to the Sun. Hopefully it puts on a good show for all of December too!”

And Comet Linear 2012 X1 was at 14th magnitude, but now in outburst, John said, “it is over 100-fold brighter at 8th magnitude and expanding! It was low on the horizon at dawn, and tough to get. It just cleared the trees at 7:07am in bright dawn light! I managed a couple of quick shots before my CCD was flooded completely with light!”

Of Comet Lovejoy, John said, “I found it has developed a faint long tail…it is at least 12 arc minutes in length and the comet’s coma is now around 6 arc minutes in diameter. I already notified Terry Lovejoy in Australia and he was excited to hear his comet has developed a new tail!”

Here’s a timelapse video from John of Comet Lovejoy moving through the constellation of Canus Minor:

Here’s a view from a smaller telescope from Tom Wildoner, to give a better idea of what “most of us” would see with our humbler telescopes!

The view of Mars and Comet ISON on the morning of October 28, 2013. taken using a 75mm lens, 30 seconds at ISO 800. Look for the small blur inside the yellow circle. Credit and copyright: Tom Wildoner.

Comet 2012 1X (LINEAR) on October 28, 2013 following its recent outburst. Obtained under bright twilight, low altitude and moonlight! Credit and copyright: Damian Peach.

Comet ISON Nucleus on October 26, 2013 at 9:43 - 10:27 U.T. Taken with QHY8 CCD & Homemade 16" Newtonian telescope. A total of 40 minutes of exposure (20 x 120 second exposures). Credit and copyright: John Chumack/Galactic Images. — Comet ISON Nucleus on October 26, 2013 at 9:43 – 10:27 U.T. Taken with QHY8 CCD & Homemade 16″ Newtonian telescope. A total of 40 minutes of exposure (20 x 120 second exposures). Credit and copyright: John Chumack/Galactic Images.

Even NASA astronomers were out trying to take images of these comets. Here’s an image taken from NASA’s Marshall Spaceflight Center:

Comet ISON on October 25, 2013, taken with a 14 inch telescope at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Credit: NASA/MSFC/Aaron Kingery — Comet ISON on October 25, 2013, taken with a 14 inch telescope at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Credit: NASA/MSFC/Aaron Kingery

NASA explains the image:

In the early morning of Oct. 25 (6:45 a.m. EDT), NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., used a 14″ telescope to capture this image of Comet C/2012 S1 (ISON), which is brightening as it approaches the sun. The comet shines with a faint green color just to the left of center. The diagonal streak right of center was caused by the Italian SkyMed-2 satellite passing though the field of view. At magnitude 8.5, the comet is still too faint for the unaided eye or small binoculars, but it’s an easy target in a small telescope.

At this time of this image, ISON was located in the constellation of Leo the Lion, some 132 million miles from Earth and heading in toward the sun at 87,900 miles per hour.

If you want to try and see some of these comets for yourself, see our recent “explainers” of how to see Comet 2012 1X LINEAR, Comet 2P (Encke), Comet 2011 W3 (Lovejoy), and the big one, Comet ISON.

September 10, 2013December 23, 2015 by Bob King

New Comet Discovered: Lovejoy Will Add to “Comet Lineup” in Winter Skies

New Comet Lovejoy starts out slow but quickly gains speed as it crosses from near Orion in mid-September to Ursa Major in November, when it will be closest to Earth. Created with Chris Marriott's SkyMap software

Move over Comet ISON. You’ve got company. Australian amateur astronomer Terry Lovejoy, discoverer of three previous comets, including the famous, long-tailed sungrazer C/2011 W3 (Lovejoy), just added a 4th to his tally.

This new comet will add to a lineup of comets that should grace early November skies in the northern hemisphere: Comets ISON, Encke and now the new Lovejoy.

Comet C/2013 R1 Lovejoy photographed on Sept. 10. The comet is visible in larger amateur telescopes in September but may brighten to small scope visibility in November. Credit: Michael Jaeger — Comet C/2013 R1 Lovejoy photographed on Sept. 10. The comet is visible in larger amateur telescopes in September but may brighten to small scope visibility in November. Streak at right is a geostationary satellite. Credit: Michael Jaeger

The discovery of C/2013 R1 Lovejoy was announced on Sept. 9 after two nights of photographic observations by Lovejoy with an 8-inch (20 cm) Schmidt-Cassegrain reflector. When nabbed, the comet was a faint midge of about 14.5 magnitude crossing the border between Orion and Monoceros. Subsequent observations by other amateur astronomers peg it a bit brighter at 14.0 with a small, condensed coma.

*Comet Lovejoy has a small, condensed coma (head) about 30 arc seconds across with a faint, short tail in this photo made on Sept. 8. Credit: Ernesto Guido and Nick Howes*

Right now you’ll need a hefty telescope to catch a glimpse of Lovejoy’s latest, but come November the comet will glow at around 8th magnitude, making it a perfect target for smaller telescopes. At closest approach on the Nov. 23, Lovejoy will pass 38.1 million miles (61.3 million km) from Earth while sailing across the Big Dipper at a quick pace.

The comet is a faint 14th magnitude object just east of Orion's Belt in the dim constellation Monoceros the Unicorn. The map shows its position tomorrow morning Sept. 11 just before the start of morning twilight. Stellarium — The comet is a faint 14th magnitude object just east of Orion’s Belt in the dim constellation Monoceros the Unicorn. The map shows its position tomorrow morning Sept. 11 just before the start of morning twilight. Stellarium

Mid to late November is also the time when Comet ISON, the current focus of much professional and amateur observation, will be at its brightest in the morning sky at around magnitude 2-3. Get ready for some busy nights at the telescope!

A graph showing the comet's predicted magnitude (subject to change) in red versus the comet's elongation or distance from the sun. You can see that it will up in a dark sky for a long time especially around the time when it's brightest. Credit: Ernesto Guido & Nick Howes — A graph showing the comet’s predicted magnitude (subject to change) in red versus the comet’s elongation or angular distance from the sun. You can see that it will up in a dark sky for a long time including around the time when it’s brightest. Credit: Ernesto Guido & Nick Howes

C/2013 R1 will whip by the sun on Christmas Day at a distance of 81 million miles (130.3 million km) and then return back to the deeps from whence it came.

The charts here give you a general idea of its location and path over the next couple months. As the comet crosses into small-scope territory in early November, I’ll provide maps for you to find it.

A graphic created by Stuart Atkinson showing the comet and planetary lineup that should be in the skies on November 9, 2013.

And as Stuart Atkinson noted on his website, Cumbrian Sky a great lineup should be in the northern hemisphere skies on November 9, 2013. From the left, Comet Encke will be magnitude 6, ISON should be at about magnitude 6 or 7; then Mars, followed by the new Comet Lovejoy, which will be still very faint at around magnitude 9, topped off by a bright Jupiter. The comets will not likely be of naked eye visibility, but this should be a great chance for astrophotographer to capture this lineup!

Comet Lovejoy is approaching the plane of the planets from down under. The diagram shows the comet's position today. Like many comets, Lovejoy's orbit is steeply inclined - in this case 62 degrees. Credit: NASA — Comet Lovejoy is approaching the plane of the planets from “down under” (lower right). The diagram shows the comet’s position today. Like many comets, Lovejoy’s orbit is steeply inclined – in this case 62 degrees. Credit: NASA

Welcome to an exciting time for comet lovers, and congratulations Terry on another great discovery!

January 31, 2012December 24, 2015 by Ken Kremer

Amazing Panorama of Western Europe at Night from Space Station

Western Europe at Night With hardware from the Earth-orbiting International Space Station appearing in the near foreground, a night time European panorama reveals city lights from Belgium and the Netherlands at bottom center. the British Isles partially obscured by solar array panels at left, the North Sea at left center, and Scandinavia at right center beneath the end effector of the Space Station Remote Manipulator System or Canadarm2. This image was taken by the station crew on Jan. 22, 2012. Credit: NASA

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An amazing panorama revealing Western Europe’s ‘Cities at Night’ with hardware from the stations robotic ‘hand’ and solar arrays in the foreground was captured by the crew in a beautiful new image showing millions of Earth’s inhabitants from the Earth-orbiting International Space Station (ISS).

The sweeping panoramic vista shows several Western European countries starting with the British Isles partially obscured by twin solar arrays at left, the North Sea at left center, Belgium and the Netherlands (Holland) at bottom center, and the Scandinavian land mass at right center by the hand, or end effector, of the Canadian-built ISS robotic arm known as the Space Station Remote Manipulator System (SSRMS) or Canadarm2.

European Space Agency astronaut Andre Kuipers gazing at Earth from the Cupola dome of the ISS

Coincidentally European Space Agency astronaut Andre Kuipers from Holland (photo at left) is currently aboard the ISS, soaring some 400 kilometers (250 miles) overhead.

The panoramic image was taken by the ISS residents on January 22, 2012.

The Expedition 30 crew of six men currently serving aboard the ISS (photo below) hail from the US, Russia and Holland.

NASA astronaut Dan Burbank is the commander of Expedition 30 and recently snapped awesome photos of Comet Lovejoy.

“Cities at Night” – Here’s a portion of a relevant ISS Blog post from NASA astronaut Don Pettit on Jan. 27, 2012:

“Cities at night are different from their drab daytime counterparts. They present a most spectacular display that rivals a Broadway marquee. And cities around the world are different. Some show blue-green, while others show yellow-orange. Some have rectangular grids, while others look like a fractal-snapshot from Mandelbrot space.”

“Patterns in the countryside are different in Europe, North America, and South America. In space, you can see political boundaries that show up only at night. As if a beacon for humanity, Las Vegas is truly the brightest spot on Earth. Cities at night may very well be the most beautiful unintentional consequence of human activity,” writes NASA astronaut Don Pettit currently residing aboard the ISS.

Comet Lovejoy on 22 Dec. 2011 from the International Space Station. Comet Lovejoy is visible near Earth’s horizon in this nighttime image photographed by NASA astronaut Dan Burbank, Expedition 30 commander, onboard the International Space Station on Dec. 22, 2011. Credit: NASA/Dan Burbank

Expedition 30 Crew: Pictured on the front row are NASA astronaut Dan Burbank, commander; and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Kononenko, flight engineer. Pictured from the left (back row) are Russian cosmonauts Anton Shkaplerov and Anatoly Ivanishin; along with European Space Agency astronaut Andre Kuipers and NASA astronaut Don Pettit, all flight engineers. Photo credit: NASA and International Space Station partners

January 19, 2012December 24, 2015 by Tammy Plotner

I Thought I Saw A UFO! Mystery Triangle On STEREO Image Explained…

Here is a diagram showing the location of the various features in the image. Credit: NASA

Mystery diamond-shape “object” entering the field-of-view of the HI2 telescope on STEREO Behind around December 26, 2011. Credit: NASA

The STEREO (Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory) is a two-year mission conducted by NASA. It employs nearly identical twin telescopes – one positioned ahead of Earth’s orbit and the other behind – designed to study the Sun’s activities spectroscopically. However, it can sometimes pick up some very unusual findings! On December 26, 2011, the STEREO Behind Observatory’s HI2 telescope captured an ambiguous triangle entering the field of view and moving from right to left just above the trapezoidal occulter as seen in the above movie. Just what is this “thing”?!

Before you get ready to call the men in black, know that there is a logical answer… and it comes into play on the opposite side of the STEREO image. Play the movie again and watch. (It’s a bit more obvious in this close-up view.) Just as the weird triangle begins its approach, you’ll notice the dazzling Venus enters the field of view of the HI2-B at the same time to the lower left. As you watch, you’ll see they keep exactly the same time – in opposite – across the detector image. This isn’t just a chance happening… it’s a naturally-occurring internal reflection caused by Venus’ brilliance in the telescope’s optics. It might be exciting for the moment, but it’s nothing that hasn’t happened in the past. Just check out these great STEREO Reflections of Earth, and all sorts of other cool images on the STEREO Image Artifacts pages.

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What else can be seen? As you can tell from this photograph, Earth is also starring in the show, but doesn’t come in as striking as Venus. What’s more you can also see the tail of Comet Lovejoy streaking in from the left just above Venus towards the end of the movie.

Exactly how do you keep track of what’s going on? Check out the Where Is STEREO? pages for up-to-date information and the totally cool Current STEREO Solar Images!

Original Story Source: Triangular shaped object in STEREO data explained.