Gallery: Tempel 1 (2004-2005)
Observation made by Elizabeth M. Warner
| Image Parameter | Details |
| Comments: | Setup telescopes during my class and started off by focusing on Jupiter. Once it got dark enough, started searching the sky. Knew the comet was near Vindemiatrix. And I had coordinates, but the two refractors are very manual so I had to starhop. After consulting SNP on the laptop, managed to find the right fov in both the refractors but the comet was just too dim -- No, the sky was still just too light polluted (and believe it or not it was one of the better nights!) to see the comet.
Position calibrated the 14" on Vindemiatrix, then did the short slew to the RA and dec. Nothing visible in the eyepiece, not even stars. Using the finder, manually slewed around and adjusted the position. Took some shots but the camera FOV is very small. Moved the telescope some more. Got it! Then, in trying to center the comet, I must have moved too far east. And there was another fuzzy. This was a more general fuzzball. I managed to move back onto the comet which, while not clearly obvious, had a one side that was more fuzzy than the other. Managed to take several images with the camera. Imaging was however bittersweet. I knew I had the comet in the view, and the focus was pretty good. But our camera is dying and has this banding that occurs in the images. Flatfielding only makes it worse. Have not had a chance to process the images... about the most I'll do is mosaic several together to get the comet and the galaxy showing. When I went in to the office the day after, saw an image from Holloway (and later Jäger) taken at about the same time! Their FOVs are much larger and show the comet, the galaxy I saw as well as a one or two other really dim galaxies. |
| Image Date/Time: | 2005-05-10/01.00 - 04.30 UT |
| Observing Site: | UM Observatory
College Park, MD |
| Weather: | clear, pleasant |
| Telescope: | 8" refractor, 7" refractor, 14" sct |
| Camera: | ST8 on 14" |
Table 1: Data about observation.
Updated: 30-Jul-2013