Comet Schwassmann-Wachmann 3

Hello fellow sky gazers, Has anyone seen this comet yet, and if so what are your impressions (Do you think its going to be a good one.) I tried for it last Friday night using my 8 inch Dob under slightly hazy, first quarter moon-lit skies, but failed to sight it. Usually - even under these conditions - if a comet is even half way decent (bright enough), I'll have no problem bagging it. I used the star chart in the May issue of S&T (page 61) which is very detailed in finding its location - so I'm certain I was scanning in the correct area of the sky. Thanks, Dave Sewell

I observed 73P on Monday nite with a glowing moon in the sky. So my impression is that it has brightened somewhat. It was still a very tough object to spot I found it scanning the area around Epsilon Bootis. I caught it with the motion of the scope but then could really see it best using averted vision. I was observing with a 5" apo at 71X. I intended to get the exact coordinates from my sky program but recorded where my mouse pointer was rather than my scope.

Kevin

Two friends and I observed the comet Tuesday under skies less than Mag 4. Fragment B was a vague smudge with no distinct structure apparent. We observed with a 12" Orion Dob and 10" Truss. It was also discernable in my 20X100 binos, but just. A tough find under the poor seeing conditions. A jet came over and there was a distinct reflection cone from the landing lights, a testament to the amount of moisture in the air. But Hey! We saw it.

I was at the Naylor Observatory again on Wednesday night to help out with the observing portion of the ASH spring astronomy class. The B fragment seemed even more difficult to see through the 17" f/15 classical Cassegrain than it did the previous night.

Dave Mitsky

As posted on Spaceweather.com:

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COMET NEWS: Dying comet 73P/Schwassmann Wachmann 3

http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2006/24mar_73p.htm

is falling apart with a vengence. Even the fragments are fragmenting. Last night University of Arizona astronomer Carl Hergenrother took this picture of Fragment G, which is now a swarm of more than 15 pieces:

http://www.spaceweather.com/swpod2006/27apr06/hergenrother1.gif


As the comet crumbles, fresh veins of ice and dust are exposed to sunlight, causing the pieces to brighten. Fragment G (mag. 12) is still too faint for most backyard telescopes, but Fragment B (mag. 9) is an easy target--and it is undergoing a similar disruption event.

http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap060426.html

To see it, point your telescope toward the constellation Corona Borealis in the eastern sky an hour or so after sunset;

http://www.spaceweather.com/images2006/27apr06/skymap_north.gif

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I had no problems at all observing comet 73P/Schwassmann Wachmann 3 (Fragment C) from a severely polluted urban
site on saturday night. I setup an 11 inch dobsonian in my back yard in west St. Louis city (under extreme lioght pollution conditions) and had no problem finding and seeing 73P. I could even see a fan shaped tail of fragment C. So even if you're stuck in a light polluted location, get the scope out if it clears up!


This site is updated daily and has good charts for
finding this comet:

http://www.skyhound.com/sh/skyhound.html

The relevant charts and pages are found by navigating
to the "comets' page.

K. Michael Malolepszy
St. Louis Astronomical Society

Hi All, I saw both B and C components very easily last night with a 4" refractor. Here are pics of the B and C component. Scope: AP 130 at f/4.5, Canon 20Da. This is the B component.

Attached Image:

And here is the C component. It is brighter than B and the tail is more prominent. Note also the color differences.

Attached Image:

I had to drive 20 miles to a relatively dark (green) sky mostly unblocked by budding trees, but I DID finally manage to see fragment C, I think. Lot dimmer than I thought it would be- frankly M13 was a lot more interesting in my 10 inch Coulter as well as my 20x80 binoculars.

But heck, if a couple of the bits and pieces finally decide to swing by this way, I'm sure I can modify my opinion, in the hours we'd have left....

Jess Tauber