55 replies to this topic

[joehudock]

The clouds were finally thinning out last night by 10pm when I set up my 114mm Sams Club newtonian on a recycled Made In Japan GEM with a home Brew 12X RACI and Rigel Quikfinder. I used the Rigel to point in the general area and then searched with the RACI looking for the star pattern near the comet given in the on-line Stellarium. This is what Stellarium shows:

I only saw about the eight brightest stars, including the three pairs left to right with the third pair noticeably dimmer but the pattern kind-of matched stellarium but did not see the comet. I was at about eleven degrees elevation sort-of 25 degrees heading. The transparency and seeing had improved from bad to poor according to the Gettysburg College Observatory web site.

I then went to plan B and put  the Rigel on Edasich which was easy to find since it was the way brightest star in the RACI and just barely visible by eyeball in the area. I swung the GEM 5 degrees in RA and found myself back where I had just been. Again, no comet but I positioned the telescope view centered on the two rightmost (as seen from the RACI) stars. Using a 20mm lens, so about 25X, I saw a fuzzy smudge above what i guessed to be star HD 137928. The telescope view was again kind of like this rotated Stellarium view with a lot fewer stars visible:

Where the comet should be was not a bright spot but was instead a fuzzy blob a lot dimmer than the stars but about 4 to 6 arc-minutes in diameter. This was a bit disappointing given the posted photos of the comet. But the seeing conditions were lousy, there was some mist and the low elevation put it in the skyglow from the bright lights of the apple sauce cannery in Biglerville, not to mention the sky in that direction is given as Bortle 5. Anyhow, maybe this is why most everybody else chooses to look for the comet in the early AM when it is much higher in the sky.

[J A VOLK]

I viewed it from very dark skies near Flagstaff this morning.  It was very prominent in 10x42 binos, fairly large & U shaped with a hint of a tail.  It seemed to be in the neighborhood of mag 6.

[Oddyse]

  You can find it. I did two nights ago for the first time around 8pm in Tennessee. Slightly northeast, Approx 20 degrees above horizon. Using 21mm eyepiece in 5 inch refractor, missed it with low power eyepieces. You will see what looks like a star with a green glow. More magnification and you will see red and white also. No tail but has a fizzle to it so you know it is not a star. Not big and not an awesome site but fun and rare like all comets. Dont expect it to look like all the pictures being posted with long exposures and processing. Regards

[RoofMonkey911]

This what I saw through a 114mm a few mornings ago.

Yes the comet will look like a faint fuzzy smudge.

Edit to add: this is from a suburban area, with an interstate directly below the area of the comet.

Somyou may indeed see it a bit better.

 

Edited by RoofMonkey911, 22 January 2023 - 06:00 PM.

[Dave Mitsky]

This was a bit disappointing given the posted photos of the comet.

You should never judge what a celestial object will look like through an eyepiece by how it looks in a photographic image.

 

I observed Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) this morning from the orange-zone Naylor Observatory.  The transparency was very poor but I was able to see it using my Canon 15x50 IS, an 8" f/6 Hardin Deep Space Hunter Dob at 40 and 86x, and a 12.5" f/6 Cave Newtonian at 63 and 76x.  The comet resembled an unresolved globular cluster.

Unfortunately, the sky grew too cloudy for me to observe the comet for very long.

[Oddyse]

  That's actually a good photo Rmonkey. But better skies and you would see more than a smudge. Seeing Bortle 2, Skywatcher Esprit 120, 150 mag. Regards

Attached Thumbnails

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Edited by Oddyse, 22 January 2023 - 09:34 PM.

[39.1N84.5W]

I always look at the sketches done by CN users before attempting an early morning session.

[OBXNC]

The clouds were finally thinning out last night by 10pm when I set up my 114mm Sams Club newtonian on a recycled Made In Japan GEM with a home Brew 12X RACI and Rigel Quikfinder. I used the Rigel to point in the general area and then searched with the RACI looking for the star pattern near the comet given in the on-line Stellarium. This is what Stellarium shows:

finder view.gif

I only saw about the eight brightest stars, including the three pairs left to right with the third pair noticeably dimmer but the pattern kind-of matched stellarium but did not see the comet. I was at about eleven degrees elevation sort-of 25 degrees heading. The transparency and seeing had improved from bad to poor according to the Gettysburg College Observatory web site.

I then went to plan B and put  the Rigel on Edasich which was easy to find since it was the way brightest star in the RACI and just barely visible by eyeball in the area. I swung the GEM 5 degrees in RA and found myself back where I had just been. Again, no comet but I positioned the telescope view centered on the two rightmost (as seen from the RACI) stars. Using a 20mm lens, so about 25X, I saw a fuzzy smudge above what i guessed to be star HD 137928. The telescope view was again kind of like this rotated Stellarium view with a lot fewer stars visible:

scope view.gif

Where the comet should be was not a bright spot but was instead a fuzzy blob a lot dimmer than the stars but about 4 to 6 arc-minutes in diameter. This was a bit disappointing given the posted photos of the comet. But the seeing conditions were lousy, there was some mist and the low elevation put it in the skyglow from the bright lights of the apple sauce cannery in Biglerville, not to mention the sky in that direction is given as Bortle 5. Anyhow, maybe this is why most everybody else chooses to look for the comet in the early AM when it is much higher in the sky.

Curious, where are you located that the comet is visible at 10pm?

[joehudock]

Curious, where are you located that the comet is visible at 10pm?

40 degrees north 77 degrees west, at 10pm comet was to be at 9 degrees elevation and 21 degrees heading. Now visible is up to interpretation but it was indicated to be above the horizon enough to clear the roof of my neighbor's house.

[OBXNC]

40 degrees north 77 degrees west, at 10pm comet was to be at 9 degrees elevation and 21 degrees heading. Now visible is up to interpretation but it was indicated to be above the horizon enough to clear the roof of my neighbor's house.

OK, somewhere in Pa. I was thinking after midnight a least on the eastern US.  I may try tonight around midnight,  Nice and freezing cold.

[Nankins]

I am going to try tonight. It does not look like a green smudge, I can say that. In fact, SkyLive, which I have found very reliable,
is showing it as a naked eye comet now for those of us in dark skies. Since it gets closer for the next week, it could get even better.

[Dave Mitsky]

Here's the Heavens Above finder chart for this morning.

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[Dave Mitsky]

I've seen two reports of naked-eye sightings.  Some of the recent COBS magnitude estimates put the comet's brightness at fifth magnitude.

[Jon Isaacs]

I've seen two reports of naked-eye sightings.  Some of the recent COBS magnitude estimates put the comet's brightness at fifth magnitude.

 

I believe I was able to see the comet C2022 E/3 early this morning naked eye. The high desert sky was very transparent and measured 21.36 mpsas with an SQM.

 

The current location is fortuitous for naked eye sightings as it's about 2.5° NW of iota Draconis, a region lacking bright stars.  

 

I saw something there about 1 am. I verified it looking through the Telrad with the scope pointed at the comet.

 

As the comet rose, it became more consistent and towards 5 am I was seeing moments where it was more than just a bright spot.

 

Jon

[joehudock]

This what I saw through a 114mm a few mornings ago.

Yes the comet will look like a faint fuzzy smudge.

Edit to add: this is from a suburban area, with an interstate directly below the area of the comet.

Somyou may indeed see it a bit better.

 

ACB92127-538D-4C64-9FB3-F5DB0B1B2F62.jpeg

Seeing your photo inspired me to try taking a picture last night with the cell phone using the cell phone holder that came with my Sams Club reflector. Got nothing but all black so there must be more to it than that. This was even using my 8inch SVP.

I had plenty of notice to set it up since the clouds were thinning  out by late afternoon. Seeing and transparency were both in the poor to below average range according to the Gettysburg College Observatory web site.

The comet was harder to find by star hopping with no unique star patterns near it but I used the setting circles on the SVP to find it. This approach works decent with the vernier scales I added to get within a quarter degree (1 minute) in RA and two tenths degree in DEC.

The comet seemed only slightly brighter than last Saturday even with the larger aperture. I took a break from 8pm to 10pm hoping the higher elevation would help. It didn't,  the haze was worse.
 

[RoofMonkey911]

Seeing your photo inspired me to try taking a picture last night with the cell phone using the cell phone holder that came with my Sams Club reflector. Got nothing but all black so there must be more to it than that. This was even using my 8inch SVP.

I had plenty of notice to set it up since the clouds were thinning  out by late afternoon. Seeing and transparency were both in the poor to below average range according to the Gettysburg College Observatory web site.

The comet was harder to find by star hopping with no unique star patterns near it but I used the setting circles on the SVP to find it. This approach works decent with the vernier scales I added to get within a quarter degree (1 minute) in RA and two tenths degree in DEC.

The comet seemed only slightly brighter than last Saturday even with the larger aperture. I took a break from 8pm to 10pm hoping the higher elevation would help. It didn't,  the haze was worse.
 

I did have to do some editing to the photo. But I tried my best to match what I was seeing in the small scope I was using.

[Ittan_ESCostco]

I did have to do some editing to the photo. But I tried my best to match what I was seeing in the small scope I was using.

I saw this through the Explore Scientific 10" hybrid truss(all in box accessories) but couldnt take a picture. It took me almost an hour to find it. The finder scope if not very good, but what I did was as follows, 

1. Find Big Dipper

2. Align telescope to Alcor/Alkaid 

Then start moving slowly, very slowly and start looking around. I found Edasish and thought it was the comet. Then realized too bright. Moved the scope up and around a bit. Found it. So nice to see it, but didnt look like what they show in astrophotography. But very excited to see our first comet through a scope.

[joehudock]

Comet E3 was pretty easy to spot last night before 8pm even with the moon light since transparency was about average but seeing was below average for sure. The comet was 4 degrees west of Kochab making it pretty straight forward to spot. It seemed to be around 6 arc-minutes in diameter with a broad fan shaped tail. Definitely  the brightest its been for me. This time it showed in the 9x50 finder scope, was clear with 10x50 binoculars and could also spot it with the 7X50 Tasco binoculars I bought new in 1962. But no way could I see it naked eye.

I found it right off after setting up and checking out Venus around 6:15 then back to it at 7. By quarter to 8 the scattered clouds were a lot less scattered so just packed it up for the night.

[Neanderthal]

I observed it last night with both the AT50 and AD8 scopes. What I saw very closely resembled the photo in post #4. My northern sky is pretty washed out, especially low to the horizon. Next opportunity I have to take a look, I'm going to drive away from town a few miles to get into darker skies.

[Dave Mitsky]

I observed Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) for the fifth time last night.  I was at the Naylor Observatory again but this time it was early (around 9:30 p.m. EST) and the waxing crescent Moon was all too apparent.  Although the conditions varied quite a bit, when the sky was clear(ish) I got an SQM-L reading of about 19.3 mpsas at the area where the comet was located.

 

I could not see the comet without optical aid but it was an easy target with my 8x42 and 15x50 IS binoculars.  I had a fairly good view through the observatory's 17" classical Cassegrain at 116 and 170x.  I could see a subtle hint of aquamarine color when I observed the comet through my 15x50 IS and the 17" telescope at 116x on Friday morning but not last night.

[Dave Mitsky]

Here's a screen capture from Stellarium showing the location of the comet tonight,

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[Oddyse]

.... the comet is easy to find now without any Hi-Tech or app assistance. Visible in Tennessee, Jan 28 to naked eye. Bortle 2-3. Yep, looks like a faint star. Point scope slightly NE, about 20 degrees above horizon. Look for star-like object with green tint. Zoom in to see something frizzling, red, white colors. I haven't been able to make out a tail yet. Not big or awesome, but any comet is a treat. Esprit 120,150X. Regards

Edited by Oddyse, 29 January 2023 - 10:47 AM.

[Chucky]

Had my first look last night from just outside the Columbus, Ohio outerbelt.  My skies are Bortle 7, and the sky while clear, wasn't all that transparent.

 

Easily located the comet in my 15 x 70's.  As others have indicated, it did look a bit like a decent sized globular.  No tail.  Got bored quickly after taking a few peaks.  I can, however, see how it might look quite nice under much better skies.

Edited by Chucky, 29 January 2023 - 09:59 AM.

[theskywatcher]

Saw it Saturday night for the second time.  No green color, just a gray mass resembling a globular cluster.  Could not spot it naked eye but could see it with an 8 power monocular.

[sbendick]

First post!

 

After years of wanting a telescope, my wife and I bought an Orion XT8. Very happy so far with planet viewing.

 

After a very cloudy 2nd half of January in Southeastern Connecticut, we finally had a less cloudy evening, so I wanted to make C/2022 E3 ZTF my first find with the Orion on an object that I couldn't see with the naked eye. Please to report that I was successful after about a half hour using the 25mm eyepiece that came with the scope. Like many other  reports on this page, it was as fuzzy clump. I was still very happy to find it. 

 

We had a lot of fun a couple summers ago viewing Neowise with binoculars and even getting decent pictures with a handheld Galaxy S10 on Night Mode. This comet is much more elusive IMO. Found it with my binoculars, but still not much more than a clump, so I wasn't surprised that the results at 25mm were about the same. Will try again this evening if the skies stay clear.

 

Sean