DSLR astrophotography update: 12P has quickly become a good target for DSLR imaging, and a 100 mm or larger lens is no longer necessary to show a nice tail. It isn't clear how much of this is due to the natural evolution of the comet or to the recent outburst, but either way, get out there and take some images!
Yesterday, 3/29 I viewed Pons Brooks after driving an hour west of DFW in middle-of-nowhere darkness, with my 12X60 Vortex binoculars on a tripod. It was hard to find (I'm new at this) and a disappointing light greenish fuzz when I found it. So I spent almost three hours viewing incredible Jupiter & 4 of it's moons, Orion, about 100 satellites streaking across the sky, and later the moon rising behind me, which I examined in awestruck wonder for an hour! I did return to Pons Brooks every 5-10 minutes to see if it had brightened, but it was setting so remained a fuzz. So now I'm fascinated! I just bought a Celestron Nexstar 8SE. When it arrives in a couple days I will drive hours out into the West Texas desert to get a much better look at Pons Brooks...and all the other amazing stuff up there!
Wow! What a great start! We wish you the best in your journey. One thing to keep in mind about visual observing is that most things are not bright and spectacular. It is only when you stop to contemplate what you are seeing, with your own eyes! that it becomes interesting, or even exciting.
Thanks for the update. My weather forecast for the coming weeks is actually good. I will try to get the M31 conjunction in the coming week. I have already gotten 12P as a small blob on my DSLR. Cant wait 🤞🏻 Looking forward to the coverage of C2023 A3 this summer, i really enjoy your videos and work! Thank you 🙂
Although your specialty is comets ( which is not a bad thing at all), this is the best Practical Astronomy channel I have seen on UA-cam. Thank you for your dedication.
There will definitely be lots of time for me to observe and photograph 12P/Pons-Brooks this month. As for the others, I did observe C/2021 S3 PANSTARRS, but it wasn’t bright and exciting as Pons-Brooks. The more fainter ones are difficult to observe since I live in light pollution.
Just remember that simple-minded estimates that don't take all of the visibility factors into account are often wrong. Then people blame the comet for this! It is too soon to do a proper analysis yet because we don't know how dusty the comet is. So it may be a good idea to temper your expectations until closer to the date.
@@Roysivertsen Other than it likely needs to get brighter and fully "turned on" its really just a matter of when someone has the opportunity to do it. But like almost everything else about a comet, the best information comes a month or two ahead of time. So unless it suddenly expels a lot of dust and brightens in the meantime, we will just have to wait. We will likely do our analysis of the observing circumstances late this summer.
@@Comet_Chasing i love how this is both exciting and disappointing, because that means the comet can actually be very dim, but that also means that the comet might become brighter than expected (probably a very low chance tho)
DSLR astrophotography update: 12P has quickly become a good target for DSLR imaging, and a 100 mm or larger lens is no longer necessary to show a nice tail. It isn't clear how much of this is due to the natural evolution of the comet or to the recent outburst, but either way, get out there and take some images!
Yesterday, 3/29 I viewed Pons Brooks after driving an hour west of DFW in middle-of-nowhere darkness, with my 12X60 Vortex binoculars on a tripod. It was hard to find (I'm new at this) and a disappointing light greenish fuzz when I found it. So I spent almost three hours viewing incredible Jupiter & 4 of it's moons, Orion, about 100 satellites streaking across the sky, and later the moon rising behind me, which I examined in awestruck wonder for an hour! I did return to Pons Brooks every 5-10 minutes to see if it had brightened, but it was setting so remained a fuzz. So now I'm fascinated! I just bought a Celestron Nexstar 8SE. When it arrives in a couple days I will drive hours out into the West Texas desert to get a much better look at Pons Brooks...and all the other amazing stuff up there!
Wow! What a great start! We wish you the best in your journey. One thing to keep in mind about visual observing is that most things are not bright and spectacular. It is only when you stop to contemplate what you are seeing, with your own eyes! that it becomes interesting, or even exciting.
I am really excited for comet Pons-Brooks! I have prepared some 9x50s to see if I could spot it
Saw it last night in 8x56 binoculars. A nice little fuzzball. It near Beta And so its pretty easy to spot.
@@Comet_Chasing Thanks for the update
Thank you for your info ... Very happy to have found this site will tell my crew about it ...
Welcome!
Thanks for the update.
My weather forecast for the coming weeks is actually good.
I will try to get the M31 conjunction in the coming week. I have already gotten 12P as a small blob on my DSLR. Cant wait 🤞🏻
Looking forward to the coverage of C2023 A3 this summer, i really enjoy your videos and work! Thank you 🙂
Awesome!
Although your specialty is comets ( which is not a bad thing at all), this is the best Practical Astronomy channel I have seen on UA-cam. Thank you for your dedication.
Appreciated
There will definitely be lots of time for me to observe and photograph 12P/Pons-Brooks this month. As for the others, I did observe C/2021 S3 PANSTARRS, but it wasn’t bright and exciting as Pons-Brooks. The more fainter ones are difficult to observe since I live in light pollution.
This comet may not be "great" and some people will likely consider it a bust, but it should do very well in light polluted skies!
@@Comet_Chasing
I agree.
really looking forward to C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) i think ive got comet fever
Just remember that simple-minded estimates that don't take all of the visibility factors into account are often wrong. Then people blame the comet for this! It is too soon to do a proper analysis yet because we don't know how dusty the comet is. So it may be a good idea to temper your expectations until closer to the date.
@@Comet_Chasing Do you know when its possible to such an analysis?
If there is a certain distance they usually do some analysis of incoming comets?
@@Roysivertsen Other than it likely needs to get brighter and fully "turned on" its really just a matter of when someone has the opportunity to do it. But like almost everything else about a comet, the best information comes a month or two ahead of time. So unless it suddenly expels a lot of dust and brightens in the meantime, we will just have to wait. We will likely do our analysis of the observing circumstances late this summer.
@@Comet_Chasing i love how this is both exciting and disappointing, because that means the comet can actually be very dim, but that also means that the comet might become brighter than expected (probably a very low chance tho)