3 Comets, Supposedly Unrelated, All Rounded The Sun On August 5, 2020, Per NASA/ESA SOHO.
From my “Comets” book
(shown below).
Click to ENLARGE & read here.
We, as yet, know very little about these three, supposedly unrelated, comets that rounded the Sun fairly close together.
Given their proximity one would normally think that they were 3 fragments from the same parent comet. Current consensus, though only based on minimal study, is that they are NOT fragments. Basically unrelated. Strange, but can happen.
Very small. Went undetected until spotted, after the fact, on SOHO images.
Have NOT been given MPC designations as yet because we don’t have enough observational data.
Just a heads up.
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872 Comets Supposedly ‘Visible’ — All Telescopically; No Naked-Eye Anymore.
Click to ENLARGE.
The raw list from the MPC.
Click to ENLARGE.
I wanted a good handle on this. Yes, the MPC maintains a list, BUT it is hard to analyze. So, I used that data to create one of my SPECIAL Excel spreadsheets. Now I can slice & dice the data at my will.
The MPC list has 872 valid entries! That is a LOT.
C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) was the brightest — albeit based on a July 13, 2020, reading. Well, that is now way obsolete. The brightness of C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) is NOW above ‘5’. It has to be ‘5’ or BELOW to be naked-eye visible. So, none of these 872 comets are naked-eye visible.
The next brightest, periodic, 2P/Encke, is at 10. That puts it even beyond binoculars.
So, a heads up. No point looking up. No naked-eye visible comets at present. SMILE.
That is why C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) was so special.
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TWO GOOD Pictures Of Comet NEOWISE (i.e., C/2020 F3), July 24, 2020, Over New Hampshire As It Bids Farewell.
Click to ENLARGE.
This was the 4th time I got to see Comet NEOWISE (C/2020 F3).
I also saw it last Friday (July 17), this Monday (July 20) & this Tuesday (July 21).
Wow. It is fading fast! Yes, still naked-eye visible & I saw it within seconds of getting out of our Nissan van. But. I was in ‘total’ darkness. No ambient light.
This time I had my ‘new’ Panasonic ZS200 all set up for a 10″ exposure & even tripod mounted. Much easier if you do this at home.
It will cease to be naked-eye within days. It is hurtling away.
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I Got Some GOOD Pictures Of Comet NEOWISE (i.e., C/2020 F3), Last Night, Over New Hampshire.
Click to ENLARGE.
With my ‘new’ Panasonic ZS200. First time I had used it with a tripod & on manual exposure. Worked it out, in the fly, in the dark, in the back of our Nissan van.
I was on my own — this being Tuesday night. We had also seen it on Friday & Monday. They felt that they had seen ENOUGH!
Glad I went out.
Today, was a total washout.
Weather permitting I will be back again Thursday — when it will be closest to us.
Seeing it was SPECIAL. Really made me happy.
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Comet NEOWISE (i.e., C/2020 F3): Next 3 Days, The Best; Closest To Earth On Thursday, July 23, 2020.
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Quite literally a HEADS UP. Weather, at least in New Hampshire, is always a factor. So, get out there. Do NOT WAIT for Thursday. Only takes ONE cloud as we have found out. SMILE.
I am going out, right after I post this. Seen it twice — three will be better, four a TREAT.
Enjoy. I am so happy I got to see it. Enjoy. We might not get another for another 23-years!
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Saw Comet NEOWISE (i.e., C/2020 F3) For the 2nd Time, Over New Hampshire, Last Night — Got Pictures.
Click to ENLARGE.
ENLARGED & Cropped.
Saw it from 3 different places, all within 2-miles of home. 1st was ‘Ridge Road‘, in New Durham, off ‘Prospect Mountain Road‘. That is where we saw it on Friday too. Good spot, high up. BUT, a main road & there are cars going by with their lights on. That kills your night vision.
On the way home, I, serendipitously, discovered two GOOD spots on ‘Prospect Mountain Road’. SMILE. I have been walking that road for 13-years. I know it well. IDEAL. I was out there for 30-minutes & there was NO traffic.
Planning to go out tonight also.
Some Tips.
It is quite high up on the horizon. Above the treeline. Maybe 30°. So, make sure to look up from the horizon. Not much, but a fair amount.
It is FAINT, but once you see it it is naked-eye, but just. Yes, you can see it naked eye. GREAT through binoculars. I am using a VERY OLD pair of 10×50 & it works great.
Between North & North West — closer to N than to NW.
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To See Comet NEOWISE (i.e., C/2020 F3) In New Hampshire — Turn OFF Your Car Lights.
We did go out again Saturday & Sunday. Same place … Ridge Road, in New Durham, off Prospect Mountain Road (about 2-miles from our house).
Yesterday there were about 4 cars.
Today there was about 6 — & some were parked, on the side of the road, with their headlights on!
That is NOT going to help.
There was cloud cover both nights, so NEOWISE was NOT visible.
Even if it was, having car lights on will NOT help. NEOWISE is NOT bright.
YOU NEED NIGHT VISION — i.e., your eyes to get accustomed to the dark. Just like boating at night. Night vision.
So, TURN OFF your car LIGHTS (once you have parked).
This was a Public Service Message.
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We Saw Comet NEOWISE (i.e., C/2020 F3) From New Hampshire, Tonight — Even Got A Blurry Picture.
Click to ENLARGE.
We, i.e., Teischan (14) & I, saw it at around 10pm Friday night, from Alton, New Hampshire. We were on ‘Ridge Road’, by the side of ‘Prospect Mountain‘ — about 2-miles from home. It is high up & gets you above the treeline. We lucked out in terms of clouds. Few around, but lots of gaps.
I saw it, through a pair of 10×50 Zeiss binoculars on the VERY 1st look. Couldn’t see it at 1st with just my glasses. Took the binoculars out, put them to my eyes, turned around & looked.
BINGO! It was right there in the middle. Could see the tail clearly. I had to take a double take to make sure. Nope, that was it.
Teischan, though she wears glasses, could see it without the binoculars. After awhile, once my eyes got accustomed (& we had a fair amount of car & bike traffic going by with their lights on), I too could see it naked-eye, BUT it was very faint.
Unless you were looking for it & saw it, it is not something that will catch your eye.
It will get brighter over the next 6-days.
It will be CLOSEST to Earth on Thursday, July 23, 2020. Weather permitting that will be our best shot of seeing it in its full glory.
I was psyched. The DAY my Comet NEOWISE book gets published on Amazon — I get to see it for the 1st time. That was special. I was excited. I was happy.
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