[Prev][Next][Index][Thread]
(meteorobs) Hale/Bopp Feb 22 ZAYGE
Feb 22
This mornings bright moon took some of the enjoyment from observing comet
Hale/Bopp. Under clear skies with a Limiting Magnitude near 4.0 and observing
from my work place in La Mesa, this is what I saw:
The nucleus is still quite small with the same prominent southerly jet. I
could not make out any change in shape if there is any splitting in progress.
it still looks the same to me. But it is definitely getting brighter.
Comparing with Deneb (+1.3), I estimate Hale/Bopp's magnitude around +0.9 or
+1.0. Thru my 14X100's, I estimate the visible tail length at 3 degrees.
The comet is a very easy naked eye object. Joe Rao posted on aol yesterday
something to the effect Sky and Telescope could stop posting RA and Dec
coordinates. If someone can't see it in the sky by now, they need a German
Sheppard dog with a big black handle on it's back. Comparing Hyakutake with
Hale/Bopp from this location, Hyakutake was hard to see. That is the coma was
very diffuse and not seemingly bright. To the naked eye, Hale/Bopp is rather
easy to see. The tail is a little tough to pick out with ease though.
George Zay