Comet Pons-Brooks on Nov 18-19, 2023


Date & Time: (Left) Nov 18 2023, from 19:09 to 19:27 JST(+0900), 3min.×5shots
(Right) Nov 19 2023, from 18:16 to 18:53 JST(+0900), 3min.×13shots
Optical: Meade 25cm(10") Schmidt-Cassegrain with conversion lens (f=1600mm, F6.3)
with IDAS LPS-P1 Light-pollution suppression filter
Auto-guided with Meade LX200 Equatorial & Lacerta M-GEN
Digital Camera: Nikon D810A
Location: Ooizumi, Hokuto city, Yamanashi pref.

Camera Settings: Recording Format...14bit CCD-RAW, converted to 16bit TIFF(3060×4080)
Device Size...15×20mm
Sensitivity...ISO4000, White Balance...Daylight


On this day, the comet Pons-Brooks is located at the eastern edge of Hercules, approximately 6 degrees west of Vega in the constellation Lyra. This photograph, taken at 24-hour intervals, reveals a round coma with 9th magnitude. Following bursts on July 20, 2023, and October 5, as well as just before the current capture on November 14, the comet has experienced consecutive outbursts. As a result of these events, it is confirmed that the apparent diameter of the coma has increased by 30% from 2.0 to 2.6 arc minutes in just 24 hours during this imaging. Additionally, it is evident that the coma is surrounded by a faint greenish ionized component. The comet is forecasted to significantly brighten in the coming months, reaching its peak brightness in spring 2024.
View angle: 0.53×0.70°


Pons-Brooks on Dec 8, 2023
Pons-Brooks on Sep 17, 2023

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