4 Comets and a transit

[mjpfc]

Morning,

             Just came back indoors after a morning of comet watching:

Lovejoy was first, high at about 03:35 to the SSW. It was immediately visible in binos and my little finder (At around mag 5.5)

and quite spectacular in the 8" newt.

ISON Next, climbed over the houses to the SW tail first. Of a similar magnitude to Lovejoy at about 6, it is starting to look 

really good now with a reasonably long narrow tail.

X1 Linear was slightly dissapointing as it remains diffuse, and has lost some of its brightness of the outburst. It looked to

be about mag 9 and spread out, but this could be because the slight ice-haze was thicker in that part of the sky.

Enke does not now get high enough for me to see wekk from my garden, so I trotted down the beach with my little 80mm

refractor. It is probably the brightest at about mag 5.2, and has its customary short fan-like tail out on view. This Comet

hardly ever fails - with 62 recorded passes you'd think it would have run out of "stuff" by now but it's still a little cracker.

I also watched Callisto crawl across the face of Jupiter, slightly beneath a shadow transiting (Poss Europa or Callisto itself,

will have to check).

Had a quick look at mars, spotted a really bright meteor drop to the eastern Horizon from around Ursa Major and then at 05:33...

The ISS turned up under Gemini to the High SW, and floated Eastwards under Leo and Bootes to the NNE rooftops.

Stayed out for a quick peek at Mercury, then back in for a coffee.

All in all, a very good return on an early alarm.

Have to make use of these weather windows in the UK, I am off work next week so with a bit of luck I will be out a few early

mornings.

Clear skies all.       Mick.

[Pete Presland]

a very good mornings work, i struggled to find Ison through the hazy clouds but Lovejoy is a cracker!

[andrew63]

That's a very rewarding nights observing - sounds like the beach vista is a great spot to.  I rose early to see Ison again, but the clouds had returned...

andrew

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Very nice. I tried briefly this morning, but clouds were all over the relevant region of the sky starting from Leo and thickening to the south east. Perhaps I can get a shot at Enke tomorrow morning. After that, I am afraid it will be lost to me.

[mjpfc]

Enke is a stunner, even with the esplanade lights behind me it stood out well, but Lovejoy is a corker too,

and being above Leo now is up very early and in darker, clearer skies.

Luckily my workplace has a sea outlook to the East, so as long as I am prepared go in to work at "stupid" oclock

I can probably get to see Islon through to its Lowest - "Queue British dreams shattering weather".

Clear skies

Mick.

[Paul73]

Mic

Sounds like I should have been comet spotting. I was hunting around for galaxies around Ursa Major about 05:30 and a meteor streaked straight across my FOV. Made up for some otherwise disappointing viewing.

I agree. Jupiter looked good. I hadn't twigged that it wasn't the transmitting moon casting the shadow.

Still learning.

Paul

[John]

Nice report Mick 

I did not wait up for Ison but Lovejoy was clear even in by 8x30 birding binoculars last night. It's a nice looking comet through a scope - I was using my ED120 last night and the nucleus of Lovejoy was compact and well defined with hints of matter tailing off it.

I also watched the double transit last night. Callisto itself was complimented by the shadow of Ganymede and later by the GRS as it came into view around the planets disk. Lovely stuff   

[Caldwell14]

Well that's my next observing list sorted for the early hours of tomorrow morning then   

[mjpfc]

Uh Oh;

          Whats happened to ISON.

I got up at 04:00 this morning and started with Lovejoy (big and bright despite the moon high to the Southwest) and even got a glimpse

of comet Nevski moving into LEO - This has been reported as mag 9 but was hard to find in the milky sky.

X1 Linear was even worse, but easy to find due to stella proximity...

And then I took my 8cm to the Beach to look at ISON.   It should have been easy to find jus below Spica, but after searching till my eyes ached

all I had around there was a nebulous patch in the approximate position.  It may be something to do with high atmospheric cloud or something

but as the sky lightened the area just below Virgo looked clear until low above the horizon,

I hope its recent outburst has not foretold the end of the Comet, Some recent reports have said it could be fragmenting already, and this mornings showing

is a bit of a worry.     I for one will keep at it until it gets too low.

Too low is now the phase for Enke - the sky was far too bright below Mercury, no chance now.

ISS showed up again at 05:33 - 05:37 Dropping along Ursa Major and on to the ESE horizon.

Nice little morning, though very chilly, hopefully atmospheric problems obscured the great green hope and he shall return.

Mick

[andrew63]

Well i thought it was me ! Was hoping to get a good view with 10x50s this morning - but nothing !  Lovejoy still fine and saw Mercury but  left wondering on Ison to.  

Good to here you saw Nevski Mick - another in outburst. Will look when the moons less bright.

andrew

[mjpfc]

21st,22nd,23rd No joy with Ison though I observed Mercury and Saturn in the vicinity.

Not looking good, but lets see what happens in the 1st days of December.

Meanwhile I am going to be glued so SOHO and STEREO at NASA to see if it turns up or breaks up.

Mick,