novbabies
Postmaster
Reged: 06/05/05
Posts: 15678
Loc: Northern Georgia!
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Jason, wonderful sketches - and welcome to friendly Cloudy Nights  !!
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Good Seeing!
Mark
Orion 12" XTi f/4.9
VERY old Edmund 6" f/8 reflector
Assorted binoculars
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JasonTX
newbie
Reged: 08/23/07
Posts: 3
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This was my FIRST sketch ever through an eyepiece. The only other sketch I made was of the whole sky last January of the Perseus area to try to figure out what my limiting magnitude was in my very urban location (about 3.0) Good thing I was very rural over the holidays!!
Yes, I shook my head a lot before realizing that I better sketch what I was looking at!!
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Special Ed
Postmaster
Reged: 05/18/03
Posts: 6339
Loc: Greenbrier Co., WV 38N, 80W
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Hi Everyone,
First, really excellent observation reports, sketches, and images of Comet Tuttle passing by M33.  Good for you, Jason, to sketch what you saw and ask questions later. 
What with Christmas visits and visitors, the glare from Luna, and poor to severely bad weather conditions, I've been offline and completely out of touch with Tuttle. I've tried to remedy that with this observation.
Conditions were above average and the comet was easy to spot (my first time) in my 10x50's by drawing a straight line through beta and gamma Ari and starhopping ~5° southwest.
I put the 8"/20cm Cat on it but the higher magnifications dimmed the comet out too much so I settled on 133x. I didn't do a defocused magnitude test on it, but it appeared to be at the threshold of naked eye visibilty--about magnitude 6. I estimated the degree of condensation at 3.
Since I haven't been following Tuttle very closely, I was caught flatfooted by how fast the comet is moving. I observed Tuttle for ~45 minutes at various magnifications, and when I started the sketch realized that the thing had moved a considerable distance in that short period of time--I guess Comet Holmes has spoiled me.  I tried to show the span in my drawing.
Good luck to all with your comet observations!
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Michael Rosolina
Celestron CGE Pro 1400 f/11 SCT
1980 Orange Tube C8 f/10 SCT
4.25" f/4.2 Astroscan Reflector
50mm f/10 Galileoscope
40mm PST f/10
APM Germany HD 15x70 binoculars
Canon 12x36 IS II binoculars
Mark I Eyeball
My CN Gallery
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novbabies
Postmaster
Reged: 06/05/05
Posts: 15678
Loc: Northern Georgia!
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Mike, nice sketch!!
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Good Seeing!
Mark
Orion 12" XTi f/4.9
VERY old Edmund 6" f/8 reflector
Assorted binoculars
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Special Ed
Postmaster
Reged: 05/18/03
Posts: 6339
Loc: Greenbrier Co., WV 38N, 80W
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Thank, Mark. This is a nice comet--I hope to see it again soon.
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Michael Rosolina
Celestron CGE Pro 1400 f/11 SCT
1980 Orange Tube C8 f/10 SCT
4.25" f/4.2 Astroscan Reflector
50mm f/10 Galileoscope
40mm PST f/10
APM Germany HD 15x70 binoculars
Canon 12x36 IS II binoculars
Mark I Eyeball
My CN Gallery
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nytecam
Postmaster
Reged: 08/20/05
Posts: 9841
Loc: London UK
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Very nice sketch Mike - here's my pic from last night via my piggybacked tiny 70mm f/3.7 OG eg ETX-70+homemade focal reducer 
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Nytecam 51N 0.1W
Meade 30cm LX200+C8+Ha+CaK PSTs+spectrographs
SX M9+Lodestar-C CCDs/Canon 300D DSLR
My Meade astrograph-colour deepsky
My supernova discovery
My dome build/spectroscopes/DSO images/Lodestar colour images & videos
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novbabies
Postmaster
Reged: 06/05/05
Posts: 15678
Loc: Northern Georgia!
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Maurice, nice shot !
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Good Seeing!
Mark
Orion 12" XTi f/4.9
VERY old Edmund 6" f/8 reflector
Assorted binoculars
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dutchie
member
Reged: 11/22/06
Posts: 17
Loc: Latvia
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Here is the 8P/Tuttle movie, from 04.01.2008. at 19:27-19:57 UTC. It's 30x1 minute exp. in one picture (1 pic = 0.1sec). With Sky-Watcher ED80 and Canon 400D on EQ6, croped.
Please, wait for image to load.
8P/Tuttle movie
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novbabies
Postmaster
Reged: 06/05/05
Posts: 15678
Loc: Northern Georgia!
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Valdis, excellent animation !!
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Good Seeing!
Mark
Orion 12" XTi f/4.9
VERY old Edmund 6" f/8 reflector
Assorted binoculars
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Special Ed
Postmaster
Reged: 05/18/03
Posts: 6339
Loc: Greenbrier Co., WV 38N, 80W
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Maurice, thank you for the compliment. Your image gives a sense of Tuttle speeding along and dutchie's animation nails it. 
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Michael Rosolina
Celestron CGE Pro 1400 f/11 SCT
1980 Orange Tube C8 f/10 SCT
4.25" f/4.2 Astroscan Reflector
50mm f/10 Galileoscope
40mm PST f/10
APM Germany HD 15x70 binoculars
Canon 12x36 IS II binoculars
Mark I Eyeball
My CN Gallery
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Special Ed
Postmaster
Reged: 05/18/03
Posts: 6339
Loc: Greenbrier Co., WV 38N, 80W
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I observed Comet Tuttle last night at about 9:00 PM local time (0200 UT 8 Jan) with my 10x50's. Transparency was average but the comet was easily spotted in Cetus. I starhopped off of alpha Piscium and found Tuttle ~3.5° to the SW. Using the defocused star method, I estimate its magnitude at around 6.0. The comet had traveled a good distance from its location in Aries where I sketched it on the 4th.
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Michael Rosolina
Celestron CGE Pro 1400 f/11 SCT
1980 Orange Tube C8 f/10 SCT
4.25" f/4.2 Astroscan Reflector
50mm f/10 Galileoscope
40mm PST f/10
APM Germany HD 15x70 binoculars
Canon 12x36 IS II binoculars
Mark I Eyeball
My CN Gallery
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Jeff Young
Post Laureate
Reged: 08/04/05
Posts: 4491
Loc: Ireland
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Finally got my first look at this one through sucker holes in the clouds. I hadn't kept up with the reports, and was for some reason expecting something rather stellar in the 7x50s, perhaps with a bit of color. Boy was I surprised.
Quote:
8P/Tuttle 1/8/2008 22:00 UTC; NELM 5.5
Larger than I expected, and not stellar at all. A small diffuse glow shows up in 7x50s, with no central condensation and no color.
18x70s show a slightly larger and more well-defined circular glow, with a moderately to poorly condensed core.
There's a nice widened pentagram asterism 4° nearly due N; a line drawn from the point through the center of the base points to 8P/Tuttle.
I kept at it for about 30 minutes and was rewarded with a sum total of maybe 2 minutes unobstructed viewing. After that I threw in the towel, so: no sketch. 
Cheers,
-- Jeff.
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Nikon 18x70s / UA Millennium Colorado:
Solarscope SF70 / TV Pronto / AP400QMD Coronado SolarMax40 DS / Bogen 055+3130
APM MC1610 / Tak FC-125 / AP1200GTO Tak Mewlon 250 / AP600EGTO
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CarlosEH
Postmaster
Reged: 01/19/05
Posts: 6714
Loc: Pembroke Pines, Broward County...
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Michael,
An excellent observation of 8P/Tuttle. This is an interesting comet. The best of luck in future observations.
Carlos
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Jimbo100
Pooh-Bah
Reged: 08/26/05
Posts: 1176
Loc: Oxford, UK.
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Hi Everyone,
On Monday night I got out with my 12x50 binoculars on a tripod; I looked for and found Comet 8P/Tuttle, my first sighting of this comet.
I was slightly surprised by it's southerly location, although as I haven't more than 2 years experience of seeking comets perhaps this isn't as unusual as I think?
The comet's appearance was slightly affected by the transparency and some thin high cloud, but it was clearly visible as a distinct small-ish round fuzzball.
Before this comet disappears I shall like to get in another observation, so I can get an idea of just how fast it is moving across the sky - let's hope the weather cooperates! 
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michaelva
member
Reged: 02/01/06
Posts: 88
Loc: Maryland
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Finally observed this after trying without success the last two nights. Good thing because won't have many more chances, if any at all. Observed from Metro Baltimore with 25 x 100 binos. I've heard the mag quoted as about 6, if so then the limiting magnitude from Baltimore with the 25 x 100 was only 6, at least in the South direction, pretty sad. Nevertheless, did succeed tonight. The prior two nights had some light clouding, and any clouding at all would be enough in the light conditions to make Tuttle invisible. Just saw a faint round haze, but a success is a success and I'll take it.
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XT8, Lightbridge 12, 4-legger "StarDog"
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nytecam
Postmaster
Reged: 08/20/05
Posts: 9841
Loc: London UK
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Here's my comet pic for Jan 7th again via Meade 70mm f/3.7 OG [=ETX-70 OTA]  The comet is getting quite low in my skies and I won't be able to follow it much longer 
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Nytecam 51N 0.1W
Meade 30cm LX200+C8+Ha+CaK PSTs+spectrographs
SX M9+Lodestar-C CCDs/Canon 300D DSLR
My Meade astrograph-colour deepsky
My supernova discovery
My dome build/spectroscopes/DSO images/Lodestar colour images & videos
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novbabies
Postmaster
Reged: 06/05/05
Posts: 15678
Loc: Northern Georgia!
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Nice one Maurice !
--------------------
Good Seeing!
Mark
Orion 12" XTi f/4.9
VERY old Edmund 6" f/8 reflector
Assorted binoculars
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Special Ed
Postmaster
Reged: 05/18/03
Posts: 6339
Loc: Greenbrier Co., WV 38N, 80W
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Carlos, thank you for the complimentary words about my sketch.
Maurice, thanks for posting your latest image.
You visual observers who posted reports--pat yourselves on the back for seeing Tuttle as it zips by (at closest approach on Jan 1st, it was only one fourth of an AU from us). According to S&T, there won't be another apparition this good for forty years.
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Michael Rosolina
Celestron CGE Pro 1400 f/11 SCT
1980 Orange Tube C8 f/10 SCT
4.25" f/4.2 Astroscan Reflector
50mm f/10 Galileoscope
40mm PST f/10
APM Germany HD 15x70 binoculars
Canon 12x36 IS II binoculars
Mark I Eyeball
My CN Gallery
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Jeff Young
Post Laureate
Reged: 08/04/05
Posts: 4491
Loc: Ireland
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A quick sketch from last evening under astronomical twilight.
Quote:
8P/Tuttle 1/10/2008 18:10 UTC
Direct vision comet was similar in size and structure to observation two nights ago. However, averted vision revealed much more tonight -- the halo expands to closer to 12' in size, brightening very smoothly on its way through the main coma to a semi-stellar core.
Still no color.
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Nikon 18x70s / UA Millennium Colorado:
Solarscope SF70 / TV Pronto / AP400QMD Coronado SolarMax40 DS / Bogen 055+3130
APM MC1610 / Tak FC-125 / AP1200GTO Tak Mewlon 250 / AP600EGTO
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jmcdonald
Carpal Tunnel
Reged: 06/01/05
Posts: 1540
Loc: Tucson, AZ
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I've viewed this twice in the last three nights. It's a beautiful bright comet. It doesn't give up much detail even in the 12.5", looking pretty much like Jeff's sketch above. It's easy in the 15x70 binoculars.
Don't miss it if you haven't seen it.
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Jerel
Discovery 12.5" modified truss DOB
Garret 15x70 LW Binoculars
IDA Membership
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