Obs & sketch of C/2012 K1, 17 June 2014

[Rob_K]

Rare clear sky this evening (before the fog came in!). This is a nice looking comet, low in the NNW after twilight.

C/2012 K1 (PANSTARRS) 2014 Jun 17.36 UT; m1=8.6; Dia= 3’ DC= 4; 11.2cm L, f8, x43 [Rob Kaufman, Bright, Victoria, Australia]

Very faint broad tail visible 6’ in length in P.A. 85; outer coma very diffuse and faint, inner coma brighter with a tiny starlike central condensation in averted vision during periods of good seeing. Comet altitude 13-degrees. Comparison stars checked using TYC-2 data; Method = M.

Cheers -

[dannat]

Still cloudy here Rob, nice sketch although it does appear faint

[Paddy]

Great sketch Rob and good to see someone is getting some observing in!

[mental4astro]

Rob, lovelly sketch mate. Subtlety of touch galore there. Would be easy to allow oneself to exaggerate the brilliance with such a dim object. Comets can be wretched things to sketch when so subtle. Brilliant.

[Rob_K]

Thanks guys. :thumbsup:



I'm still working on it Alex! In the cold light of day I think I could have emphasised the coma brightness a touch in respect to the tail because it was clearly brighter. I agree about comets - the big difficulty is representing comae and tails that trail off to nothing, sometimes excruciatingly! I've been experimenting with grey paper (light) and doing the comet with a soft grey pencil, smudged. That way there's not so much of a difference between the comet and the backing. Then scan and invert the image in Photoshop. With this one the stars that I'd done with a fine-tipped felt pen were too contrasty and I cheated by applying a light-grey wash over the entire drawing. Next time I'll do it all in pencil. Live and learn hey?

Cheers -

[cometcatcher]

Good job Rob. I can't imagine how difficult they would be to sketch. I have enough trouble photographing the things.

[Rob_K]

Cheers Kevin. They're tough things but I'm starting to be swayed that comet sketches might be valuable things to do. Every comet is different through the eyepiece (& different eyepieces & scopes & sky conditions!) and they change over time. What they look like through the eyepiece is different to how they photograph. Comets aren't like the Moon, nebulae, galaxies etc which will sketch the same now, tomorrow or in a hundred years time.

It's a matter of whether you can accurately represent the eyepiece view in a sketch, for comparative purposes. Camera technologies, sensitivities etc change over time too, but the human eye doesn't. Er, other than the damn bit about getting older... :rolleyes: