Comet Lovejoy R1
in the Evening sky
May 31, 2014

 

            
 This Comet
            has been around for a long time! I was thrilled to be able to
            still record this object which is now very faint at 12 - 13th
            magnitude in Scorpius low in the south east this time of year
            in the evenings. The comet still has a fan tail of dust which
            was a total surprise, especially how extensive it was.

            
When at its peak,
            the comet was a spectacular imaging target early in the morning
            sky before sunup, here is a shot I took around that time, with
            the comet seen best from my elevated balcony on the back of my
            house:

            
12/6/13

            
12/26/13

            
Two images are
            presented here. The top is a standard 36 minute LRGB exposure
            set to show the comet moveing against the background stars in
            Scorpius. The tail is evident fanning to the upper right.

            
The second image
            is a mathematically equalized version which shows the huge fan
            tail better at the expense of noise.

            
Farewell Comet
            Lovejoy R1.

            
Select an image size for a larger view:

1290 x 960
            



            
Select an image size for a larger view:

1290 x 960
            


Lens:  12.5" f/5 Home bult Newtonian
Platform:  Astrophysics AP1200 
Exposure:  36m LRGB
Location:  Payson, Arizona
Elevation:  5150 ft.
Sky:  Seeing  7/10, Transparency 9/10
Outside Temperature:  50F
Processing Tools:  Maxim DL, Photoshop CS2
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