What will comet ison look like

Go back and look again…. So what I did — and what a lot of people do, I gather — is buy a different tripod for it, a photographic tripod. Which one? Well, any you buy from your local camera store will be better than the one it comes with, but really just get the sturdiest you can afford.

Yes, mounted on a tripod like that the Travelscope is — pun alert — a star performer. Well, just shop around for the best deal. But basically, just do a bit of digging and you will be able to find one without too much trouble. I hope you found something hereuseful. James Canvin said this on September 24, at am Reply. Very helpful! Heigh Ho. Don said this on October 25, at am Reply. I think that most people will find satisfaction with binoculars, but not if they are out of alignment collimation.

The Altitude-Azimuth type mount you suggest is just right for straightforward viewing and quick set-ups. Kevin Bedard said this on November 1, at am Reply. Taylor said this on November 2, at pm Reply. I have searched everywhere for clear simple advice on viewing the stars etc and this just blew me away…thank you. Diane Davies said this on November 4, at pm Reply.

Stu, some very good advice for the beginner. Setting up and collimation on a cold and dark night is off-putting to many and may act as a disincentive to impromptu telescopic observation.

Patrick Moore always advised using 7 X 50 binoculars on account of their optimum 7mm exit pupil. Second hand 10 X 50 binoculars can be obtained cheaply on the likes of E-Bay and are ideal for any beginner learning their way around the sky. I have a pair of 20 X 80 Celestron binoculars and have found them to be ideal for deep-sky work. They are robust and are unlikely to go out of collimation. I normally use a heavy Manfroto tripod with them but resting them on a washing line is surprisingly effective.

Being a sun-grazer, it may not survive its close encounter with the Sun. Terry Owens said this on November 7, at pm Reply. You are commenting using your WordPress. You are commenting using your Google account. You are commenting using your Twitter account. You are commenting using your Facebook account. Notify me of new comments via email. Notify me of new posts via email. You are commenting using your Facebook account. Notify me of new comments via email.

Notify me of new posts via email. Create a free website or blog at WordPress. FAQ What will it look like..? What will it look like..? Now, please, listen carefully because this next bit is VERY important. Share this: Twitter Facebook. Like this: Like Loading Ashto said this on January 6, at pm Reply i wish it comes to chicago,il Mohammad M Rahman said this on March 12, at am Reply You should be able to see it from Chicago, but the light pollution might outshine the comet.

Ashto said this on April 28, at am Reply Could it be the great Comet of , and ? Hayvanlar Alemi Nil said this on April 18, at pm Reply. Leave a Reply Cancel reply Enter your comment here Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:. Email required Address never made public. Name required. Archives September Well-known annual showers are produced by dust ejected from short-period comets, decades or centuries before.

Unfortunately, the comet will not be observable at all during the highlight in December. The best chance to spot it from southern latitudes will be from mid to late November, when the comet should be a naked eye object visible low in the east during early dawn. The comet will be very close to the Sun, so extreme caution will be required if you try to spot it in the daytime sky. Please refer to this section for tips on observing ISON at perihelion. It will remain visible only from locations north of the equator.

For bright comets, the optical instruments of choice are just the naked eyes and, to a lesser extent, binoculars. When Comet ISON will put on its best display, throughout November and December, its coma will look like a tiny ball of light set within a milky glow. There are two types of comet tails.

The gas tail is usually a straight, narrow streamer of light, composed of gas that shines on its own with a bluish tint. If present, a broader dust tail may be the most striking visual feature, appearing as a curving fan of radiance with a yellowish hue. The dust tail is composed of particles previously trapped within the nucleus, which shine by reflecting sunlight. When Comet ISON will be low in the bright morning or evening twilight, you will see it much better if the humidity is low and the sky is free of haze.

Furthermore, if the comet will develop a long tail that extends far up into the night sky, well out of the twilight, you should travel to a dark-sky site. When far from city lights, you can see the farthest and faintest extensions of the tail. If you wish to purchase a telescope primarily for observing Comet ISON, you should choose one that can deliver a wide filed of view. However, keep in mind that these instruments are rather expensive. If you are short on your budget, the simplest, cheapest, and overall the most efficient design you could choose is the Newtonian reflector.

Look carefully at the central condensation within the coma — it may look like a hard-edged disk or it may appear as a starlike point of light. These are fountains of gas and dust, shooting up from the nucleus! With a modern DSLR camera, equipped with standard lens 35 mm format equivalent, focal length of 50 mm , the exposure should be limited to about 10 seconds. Exposures longer than 10 seconds will produce star trails and smudge the image of the comet.

Be sure to mount the camera on a sturdy tripod and use either a remote shutter control or self-timer. Later, you can combine the series of snapshots into one image, using image-processing software.

ISON should be visible in 8-inch telescopes, but it will most probably be just a dim, round fuzz ball, with no hint of a tail. By A. The bright twin stars of the constellation Gemini, Castor and Pollux, will shine close to the comet, a little to the north. To the upper right you will be able to see a trio of bright planets — Mercury, Mars, and Jupiter. On August 4, a slender crescent Moon will also join the cosmic scene. Mercury will now be directly below the comet, with Mars and Jupiter remaining to the upper right.

The comet will now rise a full two hours before the Sun. Ephemeris for August. Update September 5 : Several amateur astronomers using large telescopes have reported visual observations of the comet. ISON has brightened by two magnitudes since its recovery on August 12, so things begin to look promising! During that time, the comet will slowly brighten and move day by day against the backdrop of the constellation Cancer the Crab.

Comet ISON should be visible in small telescopes by September, and dedicated sky watchers will surely try to pick it up. You will be able to search for it with 4-inch telescopes, very close to the 5th-magnitude star Gamma Cancri and the beautiful open star cluster M44, the Beehive. Mars will lie to the upper right of ISON and a waning crescent Moon will also join in on the 2nd and 3rd. It will lie million miles million km from the Earth and million miles million km from the Sun.

By that time, astronomers should have a good idea just how much of a phenomenon the comet could turn into.

Ephemeris for September. In October, the comet will remain a morning object. Seen in the frigid predawn darkness early in the month, Comet ISON will steadily brighten and slowly move day by day against the background stars of the constellation Leo the Lion. Mars Odyssey and the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter will also snap pictures from orbit. You should really make an effort to get up early for this stunning celestial scene!

The Hubble Space Telescope and the orbiting Chandra X-Ray Observatory will also study the comet during this period, so we should look forward to some amazing pictures!

Even though ISON will head towards the dawn, to its perihelion in late November, it will still appear high in the southeast one hour before sunrise.

Ephemeris for October. Chances for a spectacular display in December now seem higher than ever…. The first week of November should be very good for viewing Comet ISON, which by that time might have brightened to naked eye visibility.

No matter how cold it will get, you should definitely bundle up, step outside, and have a look at the wonderful addition to the late autumn night sky. From within city limits, where the sky is not very dark, the comet may appear as a tail-less, fuzzy smudge. Binoculars will prove useful if not mandatory for spotting Mercury and Comet Encke. However, if the comet will develop a bright tail, there is a slim chance that we might see part of the tail poking above the horizon just before sunrise. Odds favoring that are low, and probably ISON will remain out of sight until closest approach to the Sun on November On that day the comet should return to view — in broad daylight, close to the Sun!

If Comet ISON will reach magnitude at perihelion on November 28, it will be easily visible with the naked eye as a bright speck close to the Sun.