I have just seen My first daylight comet ever!!!! Thanks Scott to your setup. After observing Venus then swung back to the comet i would estimate the brightness to be between -2 to -2.5 mag at the nucleus. That is derived from observing Venus at -4
Yep glad I could share the one in a lifetime experience of seeing a daytime comet.
After it got too low in the bright sky to see I dialled up stars Canopus and Archaner, both were readily visible at 5pm. Being well away from the sun helps there.
Scott
I have just seen My first daylight comet ever!!!! Thanks Scott to your setup. After observing Venus then swung back to the comet i would estimate the brightness to be between -2 to -2.5 mag at the nucleus. That is derived from observing Venus at -4
thanks JJJ and Rod! I will say the sky was extremely bright and full of vapour, I am going to love this week coming - even my wife can't stand my excitement at the moment. She knows just how much I am looking forward to this!
Great article with Rob Mcnaught !
So who Else has an observing session planned for Monday night ?
I will start a separate thread with our announcement & perhaps others could post their's as well
Overcast and drizzly here this morning . But noticed Jure Atanackov (from Slovenia) reported a naked eye daylight sight of the comet above the sun low in the evening sky. 15 minutes BEFORE sunset he could see 0.5 degree of tail with the naked eye, and after the sun set 1.5 degrees (and 3.6 degrees in binoculars!).
I'm off to Maryborough in country Victoria on Tuesday to try and image the comet, hopefully it will be a great show I too have never seen a naked eye comet..
Well guys and gals, this is it. This evening is our first chance to catch sight of McNaught after sundown.
I've got permission to setup on the property on top of our hill. Excellent western views!
Good luck!
I remember as a boy looking at comet Bennett with my father and i was amazed..i am in Toowoomba Qld, where and when should i try to observe it cheers Dennis
Low cloud brought in with the southerly in Newcastle today, patches of blue started to appear, in desparation I aligned the 10 inch scopes argo navis on the Sun so it was ready to go. When some more albeit washed out blue sky appeared near the sun I started looking and was astonished to see the comet THROUGH cloud whizzing past, at about 2pm today. It looked even smaller and more condensed than ever, must be significantly brighter then yesterday to see it under such conditions, the sky was very bright. What an amazing comet
Scott
Dennis, find yourself a good western horizon and just as the sun sets, you should be able to see the comet.
Don't use bino's or a scope to view till after the sun has set.
Severe storm warnings are current for the south east so we may not get a look for clouds.
Good luck.
Clear skies
But where is a good, unobstructed Western horizon in the Sydney area? I've not lived here long and wouldn't have a clue as to where to view McNaught. Any specific suggestions where I might view in Sydney?
Dennis, find yourself a good western horizon and just as the sun sets, you should be able to see the comet.
Don't use bino's or a scope to view till after the sun has set.
Severe storm warnings are current for the south east so we may not get a look for clouds.
Good luck.
Clear skies
We have a huge storm cell forming to the west has been for the last few
hours : ( perfectly clear to the east... go figure
might try in the morning, I WANT to ty my new bino out
G'day Guys,
I finally managed to find comet McNaught at 17:30 local time today.
After trying several times over the last week, I was thinking I was doing something wrong.
The sky has been really hazy here for many days which was preventing success.
The sky looked a little better today and seeing on the forum that many were picking it up easily, I tried again. I used a 75mm short refractor to finally see the small fuzzy coma at an altutude of around 35 degrees.
I 'd roughly say it was similar to Venus in total brightness but the still hazy sky would hide a lot of the coma.
Well done to those guys who got daylight images, good stuff.
Cheers, Qakka
to your setup. After observing Venus then swung back to the comet i would estimate the brightness to be between -2 to -2.5 mag at the nucleus. That is derived from observing Venus at -4
. But noticed Jure Atanackov (from Slovenia) reported a naked eye daylight sight of the comet above the sun low in the evening sky. 15 minutes BEFORE sunset he could see 0.5 degree of tail with the naked eye, and after the sun set 1.5 degrees (and 3.6 degrees in binoculars!).
I too have never seen a naked eye comet..
