Comet 17P/Holmes expanding (Nov 09, 2007)

clic for 30% size 1163 x 802 (183 kB)

clic here for 50% size 1938 x 1336 (1040 kB)


About this Image

From day to day the unique comet 17P/Holmes is expanding after it's extreme and unexpected outburst in late October.
The size of the head now has reached the diameter of the sun at a distance of now approx. 200 million km corresponding to a relative size of 23 arc min. Currently it can be found approx 2 degree east of Alpha-Perseus.

We see the comet's greatly expanded coma and traces of a fading blueish ion tail at the south-west bottom of this image, pointing mainly behind the comet's nucleus.
North is up.

 


Technical Details
Optics

16" cassegrain in corrected primary focus at f/3

Mount MK-100 GEM
Camera SBIG STL-11000M at -25C, internal filter wheel, for 16" cassegrain
Filters Astronomik LRGB
Date Nov 09, 2007 20-21h UT.
Location Wildon/Austria
Sky Conditions mag 5.5 sky, high transparency, temperature 5 C
Exposure A: L:R:G:B = 720:360:360:600 sec (120 sec sub-exposures); binned 2x2
B: L:R:G:B = 600:1200:1200:2400 sec(600 sec sub-exposures);
Processing Image aquisition and calibration in Maxim DL 4.65;
mild Larson Sekanina filter applied and blended in.
further processing in Photoshop;