comet tempel 1

[vindictive666]

hello

anyone here going to have a go at Comet Temple 1 ?

Viewing ? Pictures ?





:painting: :rockband: :thumbsup: :work: :atom: :astron: :eek: :party:

[slice of heaven]

Only visually.It's well placed for a good view.
Hopefully someone will grab a pic after the event.

[gbeal]

Too right. I located it the other night, and while it was certainly dim/small, at least I saw it, and hopefully once the moon shoots through I will get some images.

[atalas]

Yeah same here I will try and shoot before and after impact shots ,can't wait.

Louie :camera:

[xstream]

Checked it out on Sunday night with the wife, Peter (toetoe) and his brother-in-law Graham. Still difficult to resolve because of the low Mag but it's worth a look hopefully the impact on 4th July will brighten it a bit.

[ballaratdragons]

Is it expected to be any easier to see before Kaboom Day?

[acropolite]

I will have a go if the clouds and rain ever clear (Moonman and Dad's son both have new scopes)...:jump:

[xstream]

It's about Mag 9 now Ken! I don't think it's expected to get any brighter until the Big Boom.




Looks like it's going to be all over before you get the chance then Phil. :(

[ballaratdragons]

The Yanks are certainly going overboard with the 4th of July fireworks this year methinks. What have they got planned for next year. Blow up the Moon?

[Greg Bryant]

Some observers here and overseas have been reporting the comet at between 10th and 11th magnitude recently, and it's a very diffuse object, in contrast to some other comets around at present which show more condensation.

As John said, it shouldn't really change in appearance over the next three weeks until Impact Day, and as to what happens then is still anyone's guess - it could brighten dramatically or show minimal change.

[ballaratdragons]

Greg, It would be nice to see something spectacular, but it could be a fizzer too!

I don't think it will be anything like when Tarantula SuperNova'd. Now that was spectacular!! I saw that one.1986 0r 87 I think.

[Greg Bryant]

That's one of the fun things about astronomy - the uncertainty about something new.

Take the impact of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 into Jupiter in 1994. The effects of each of the individual fragments crashing into Jupiter's atmosphere were far more obvious than what was expected.

Then there's the Supernova, SN 1987A, which we saw explode in the Large Magellanic Cloud, near the Tarantula Nebula, in February 1987. It reached 3rd magnitude...yet it could have been brighter. What happened here was that it was a blue supergiant that exploded, rather than a more normal red supergiant, which would have been brighter.

[ving]

reall just expecting a general brightening i guess... I'm going to have a look if the clouds clear. as for the "big bang" shame its not on the 2nd hey you western sydneyites! it'd be great to see the collision on our get together!
never mind. :)

[fringe_dweller]

[/QUOTE] As John said, it shouldn't really change in appearance over the next three weeks until Impact Day, and as to what happens then is still anyone's guess - it could brighten dramatically or show minimal change.[/QUOTE]

It might get spectacular if the impact projectile ruptures an unknown/unseen reservoir of highly compressed gas's that propels 9P spinning into a different orbit - and it becomes a 20klm diameter SUNGRAZER!! :D

I have seen some very amazing long duration pointer meteors that i like to imagine/pretend are my personal own supernovas :ashamed:

Kearn

[ving]

had a look last night, wasnt very easy to spot because its real dim (not unlike me) and we have a 1/2 moon out. should be better when the moon goes.
I was amazed to see it in my light polluted back yard :)

[Sausageman]

I am looking forward to seeing the aftermath of the impact, but it brings up a few questions.
It is a Comet, made from what, ice and maybe a few rocks.

1. The Comet is at absolute zero,(we have all seen what happens to objects frozen in liquid nitrogen). What will happen if it shatter's it.
2. Will the impactor, just make a crater in it, or will it go clean through it, blasting it apart.
3. Could this experiment knock it out of it's current orbit, bringing it into an Earth crossing orbit?

Mike

[RAJAH235]

All of the above worry me a bit. As you said Mike, what if they change it's trajectory towards our little speck. Or 'small chunks' come our way! How will they deflect/destroy it/them? Won't have time unless they can get 'Bruce' to help! :P
A couple of our W.A.A.C.ers managed to get this DSI image from our site on Sat 12th. Approx. mag 9.8 http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y7/RAJAH235/Ice%20In%20Space-smalls/CometTemple9.jpg
:D L.

[fringe_dweller]

Mike, orbit wont change, i was just being a smart ass (again) :) its too big and going too fast - it will probably be just a flea bite to it. But as Greg said - no one has the slightest clue what will happen for sure :) but it has probably banged into many bits of space rocks many times in its life already, and survived, its the sun and Jupiter that trashes comets the best :) .
Kearn

[fringe_dweller]

read a great quote on the question of the impactor changing the orbit today by University of Arizona Regents Professor H. Jay Melosh.
" Melosh noted that Deep Impact's copper probe could no more send comet
Tempel 1 careening toward Earth than a kamikaze gnat could change the flight
path of a fully loaded Boeing 747 "
nice one :)
Kearn

[[1ponders]]

Ahhh but Kearn, what if the gnat bites the pilot :evil:

[Greg Bryant]

The rarer the event, the more likely that things can disappoint...

1) JPL continue to have trouble with the focus of their High Resolution camera onboard the Deep Impact craft. A Medium Resolution camera that's also onboard, however, should still provide images that will surpass anything taken thus far.

2) If you're struggling to observe the comet, it's about a magnitude fainter than predicted. Results announced last week by astronomers in the United States show that the comet's gas/dust output is much lower than it was at the last favourable return in 1994, which itself was also lower than at the previous favourable return in 1983.

...sounds like Deep Impact is just the thing to give the comet a little (albeit temporary?) boost!

All we need are clear skies.

[atalas]

Thanks for the update Greg ! :)

Louie

[fringe_dweller]

:) I hope so Paul! and then he spills his hot coffee on his lap while experiencing a rare allergic reaction as a result of the bite :D

Kearn