Comet Schwassmann-Wachmann 3 on May 2, 2006


f=1600mm prime focus

Date & Time: (Component C)May 2 2006, from 22:58 to 23:25 JST(+0900), 8min.×4shots
(Component B)May 2 2006, from 26:28 to 26:55 JST(+0900), 8min.×4shots
(Mag. image of B)May 2 2006, from 23:43 to 23:50 JST(+0900), 2min.×4shots
(Component G)May 2 2006, from 24:03 to 24:21 JST(+0900), 8min.×3shots
(Component R)May 2 2006, from 24:33 to 24:51 JST(+0900), 8min.×3shots
(Component N)May 2 2006, from 25:04 to 25:23 JST(+0900), 8min.×3shots
Optical: Meade 25cm(10") Schmidt-Cassegrain with conversion lens (f=1600mm, F6.3)
Auto-guided with Meade LX200 Equatorial & Pictor 201XT
Digital Camera: Nikon D70 (Remodeled)
Location: Ooizumi, Hokuto city, Yamanashi pref.

Camera Settings: Recording Format...12bit CCD-RAW, converted to 16bit TIFF(3008×2000)
CCD Sensitivity...ISO1250



f=530mm prime focus

Date & Time: (Component C)May 2 2006, from 22:20 to 22:41 JST(+0900), 150sec.×6shots
(Component B)May 2 2006, from 22:53 to 23:13 JST(+0900), 150sec.×6shots
Optical: TAKAHASHI 16cm(6.3") epsilon (f=530mm, F3.3)
Auto-guided with TAKAHASHI EM-200 Equatorial
Digital Camera: Fujifilm FinePix S2Pro
Location: Ooizumi, Hokuto city, Yamanashi pref.

Camera Settings: Recording Format...12bit CCD-RAW, converted to 16bit TIFF(3024×2016)
CCD Sensitivity...ISO1600, White Balance...Auto


The nucleus C of comet Schwassmann Wachmann 3 in that day has been positioned in the area of Hercules, other fragments are in Corona Borealis. The C has a brightness of 6th or 7th magnitude, and the B, at about 10 degrees WNW from the C, has about 8th magnitude in brightness. I could detect clear dust tails with length of over 10 arc minutes through a binocular in both major nuclei. The greenish blued coma of the B has become fairly small compared with it taken on Apr 27.
You can see several minor fragments in upper image; the component G about 1.7 degrees WNW from the B has about 14th magnitude in brightness. And a 14th magnitude component R can be captured about 53 arc minutes apart from G. You can see nuclei of N and H paralleled with a brightness of 17th magnitude about 50 arc minutes WNW from the R. And I could detect an indistinct fragment for the first time at about 14 arc minutes northwest from the R but I cannot identify the name of the fragment. The position of this nucleus is almost consistent with that of predicted position of component K but it has about 10arc minutes in position error.


Schwassmann Wachmann 3 on May 3 & 4, 2006
Schwassmann Wachmann 3 on Apr 27, 2006

Copyright(c) 2006 by Naoyuki Kurita, All rights reserved.
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