# Comet ISON = ISOFF?



## ams2d (Oct 4, 2013)

Based on the research looks like the comet won't be the "light in the sky" everyone was hoping it was going to be

http://astronomia.udea.edu.co/cometspage/

Understand this may look like an off-site topic but there have been discussions about the comet on this site previously so just passing along the apparent bad news.

Hope they get it wrong and I'll be spending some cold nights out in the middle of nowhere.

Attempting to bring this topic back to the forum. If there are people here who do astrophotography would like reading what equipment is being used.


----------



## Mt Spokane Photography (Oct 4, 2013)

It is still unknown as to what we may see, if the comet breaks up as some predict, then the timing of the breakup will determine if we see something spectacular, or if we will miss it.

http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/highlights/193909261.html


----------



## East Wind Photography (Oct 4, 2013)

The issue with their study is that it's based on comets that have visited the sun before. iSON is believed to be one that is not in an orbit...yet. The going theory is that new comets out gas more at a farther distance and comets that have been here before have already been boiled by the sun. No one has studied a comet to this degree before and certainly not one that is a new visitor.

Regardless of wether the comet is spectacular or not as it comes around the sun, I'm hoping for a really good meteor storm in mid January as the earth passes near the edge of its dust tail.


----------



## Mt Spokane Photography (Oct 9, 2013)

Its still out there and no one knows what might eventually happen


http://photoblog.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/10/08/20873766-green-light-for-ison-comet-blazes-in-stunning-shots?lite


----------



## dhr90 (Oct 9, 2013)

I've got my fingers crossed for the comet surviving, and the British weather allowing me to actually see it. Would like to attempt to capture it given it should be reasonably predictable where and when it will be in the sky (correct me if I'm wrong), compared to shooting stars anyway.


----------



## randym77 (Nov 14, 2013)

Ison brightened suddenly last night. This might bode well for a great show later this year, or it could mean the comet is breaking up.

Get out and photograph it now!

Unfortunately, the weather is not cooperating for me.


----------



## East Wind Photography (Nov 14, 2013)

There is also another comet I the morning sky called lovejoy. It's a little brighter right now than iSON.


----------



## randym77 (Nov 14, 2013)

> There is also another comet I the morning sky called lovejoy. It's a little brighter right now than iSON.



Not any more! ISON has gotten 16 times brighter over the last three days.


----------



## Mt Spokane Photography (Nov 14, 2013)

randym77 said:


> > There is also another comet I the morning sky called lovejoy. It's a little brighter right now than iSON.
> 
> 
> 
> Not any more! ISON has gotten 16 times brighter over the last three days.


Yup, the statistics mean nothing. No one knows what we will see in the next week, but its easily visible now if you have good viewing conditions.

Where are the photos? I have Mount Spokane blocking my view to the South Southeast.


----------



## East Wind Photography (Nov 15, 2013)

I think the hardest part for me is getting up that early in the morning....


----------



## randym77 (Nov 15, 2013)

I am usually up before dawn, now that daylight savings time is gone. I've gone out and looked the past couple of days, but it's been so cloudy I couldn't see anything. And it looks like it's only going to get worse over the weekend.

As for equipment...I read on the web somewhere that you should use 2000mm or less. 1000mm or less if you want to get the whole tail. (Aimed at people who hook their cameras to telescopes, I presume.) So I was going to try my 600mm (got some nice pics of the moon with it during the recent eclipse). 

But now that the comet's gotten so much brighter, I would think a wide angle would be better. Get some scenery in, too. With PANSTARRS, a lot of people got nice photos of the comet without even realizing it. The comet ended up much brighter in the photos than to the naked eye, because of the long exposure.


----------



## bdunbar79 (Nov 15, 2013)

East Wind Photography said:


> I think the hardest part for me is getting up that early in the morning....



That's easy. Just sit up all night drinkin' Natty Lite and never go to bed.


----------



## emag (Nov 15, 2013)

Mt Spokane Photography said:


> Where are the photos? I have Mount Spokane blocking my view to the South Southeast.



When I read that, all I could think of was you blocking somebody's view.... 

I have a light dome to the east, a little bit less if I plunk myself down by the Gulf. All my good eastern sky spots mean heading out early, set up and knock off a few shots then pack it up and head for work. We'll probably have a break in the weather here soon, but moonlight will be interfering for the next two weeks, my standard luck.....


----------



## tron (Nov 15, 2013)

emag said:


> Mt Spokane Photography said:
> 
> 
> > Where are the photos? I have Mount Spokane blocking my view to the South Southeast.
> ...


Same ;D


----------



## tron (Nov 15, 2013)

The problem is that when (now) its magnitude will increase, the time before sunrise when ISON rises gets less and less (there is a specific Astronomy issue dedicated to ISON that mentions details but I guess these can be easily found). So twilight will cause problems in locating and viewing it. 


After perihelion its magnitude will decrease at high rate.


----------



## mackguyver (Nov 15, 2013)

I would not recommend leaving IS ON vs. IS OFF if shooting a comet -- if that's what you're asking


----------



## distant.star (Nov 15, 2013)

bdunbar79 said:


> That's easy. Just sit up all night drinkin' Natty Lite and never go to bed.



Natty?

Are you Baltimore??


----------



## Mt Spokane Photography (Nov 16, 2013)

mackguyver said:


> I would not recommend leaving IS ON vs. IS OFF if shooting a comet -- if that's what you're asking


He is merely saying what some self proclaimed comet experts were claiming earlier this fall that based on their database of comets, that we would not be able to see it. 
A play on words ISON ISOFF.

It is a real unknown, and it may be spectacular or a fizzle, but I'm skeptical of anyone trying to use a database of basically different situations to make a prediction. History has definitely shown that comets are not predictable.


----------



## johnhenry (Nov 16, 2013)

ams2d said:


> Based on the research looks like the comet won't be the "light in the sky" everyone was hoping it was going to be
> 
> http://astronomia.udea.edu.co/cometspage/
> 
> ...




Some comets can become VERY bright and conspicuous objects with little warning, even ones that have been observed for centuries near the Earth. I looked up one night at my Mothers house while out after dark at the Milky Way and saw a large patch that seemed unfamiliar. Turned out to be an outburst from Comet Holmes in '07

http://www.aerith.net/comet/catalog/0017P/2007.html

Comets can be small, fuzzy objects that subtend only a few arc minutes of size, requiring a mount, telescope and perhaps an hour exposure to get a good look at.

Some only need a wide angle lens, a dark sky and 15 seconds @ 3200 ISO


----------



## East Wind Photography (Nov 16, 2013)

Too cloudy this weekend here in VA to take pictures. Hope to get some with my 300 and 600. Will likely shoot a number of short exposures and stack them. Always seems to produce better results than longer exposures at high ISO.


----------



## Rat (Nov 28, 2013)

Apparently, we'll have to wait for another comet


----------



## rpt (Nov 29, 2013)

Yup! We need to wait for the next one! Too bad.


----------



## Mt Spokane Photography (Nov 29, 2013)

Maybe, Maybe Not.

Something is still out there and getting brighter.


----------



## Rienzphotoz (Nov 29, 2013)

Mt Spokane Photography said:


> Maybe, Maybe Not.
> 
> Something is still out there and getting brighter.


+1 ... here is the latest (well about an hour ago news) http://edition.cnn.com/2013/11/29/us/ison-comet/

and about 17 minutes ago:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-25143861

and about 2 minutes ago:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/11/29/did-comet-ison-survive/3781669/


----------



## East Wind Photography (Nov 30, 2013)

Latest news as of 30 minutes ago is that ISON is nearly gone now. It's already faded to less than magnitude 6 and the nucleus has all but disappeared. Yeah, we've heard that before...but I think this time it's for real. If anything is left, Hubble will image it in a week or so. All that's left is dust.

Maybe with a bit of luck, we will get an increase in the number of meteors starting January 12th...However even that is looking pretty bleak at this point.


----------

