From: TerryMoselaol.com
Date: Mon, 4 Jul 2005 19:47:43 EDT
Subject: Tempel 1 much brighter
Hi all,
I just got a glimpse of Comet Tempel 1 this evening - I think! I was
observing from the Castlereagh Hills, S of Belfast, using 30x80 binocs, and a 127mm
Skywatcher Maksutov. But I was fighting gradually encroaching horizontal bands
of cloud, which made observing very difficult. I got several glimpses between
22.40 and 22.45 UT.
I could see something which wasn't on the star chart, in just the right
position, but to be honest I couldn't see it as a comet, since the sky backgound
was too bright. And with the drifting bands of cloud, I couldn't make a reliable
magnitude estimate, but I think it was between 7.0 and 7.5. However, as it
was very near the limit of visibility, even in the 125mm, when I defocused to
try to compare with nearby stars I could no longer see it, so that's not a
reliable estimate at all.
Then the clouds covered the whole area, although it was still beautifully
clear higher up, and indeed clear right down to the horizon in the North!
Since there's nothing else there in that part of the sky, it could only have
been the comet, but I can barely regard it as a 'positive' observation.
Did anyone else see it?
And weren't the pictures from the orbiter and the impactor absolutely superb?
Clear skies for tomorrow night!
Terry Moseley
aol.com Date: Mon, 4 Jul 2005 19:47:43 EDT Subject: Tempel 1 much brighter Hi all, I just got a glimpse of Comet Tempel 1 this evening - I think! I was observing from the Castlereagh Hills, S of Belfast, using 30x80 binocs, and a 127mm Skywatcher Maksutov. But I was fighting gradually encroaching horizontal bands of cloud, which made observing very difficult. I got several glimpses between 22.40 and 22.45 UT. I could see something which wasn't on the star chart, in just the right position, but to be honest I couldn't see it as a comet, since the sky backgound was too bright. And with the drifting bands of cloud, I couldn't make a reliable magnitude estimate, but I think it was between 7.0 and 7.5. However, as it was very near the limit of visibility, even in the 125mm, when I defocused to try to compare with nearby stars I could no longer see it, so that's not a reliable estimate at all. Then the clouds covered the whole area, although it was still beautifully clear higher up, and indeed clear right down to the horizon in the North! Since there's nothing else there in that part of the sky, it could only have been the comet, but I can barely regard it as a 'positive' observation. Did anyone else see it? And weren't the pictures from the orbiter and the impactor absolutely superb? Clear skies for tomorrow night! Terry Moseley
