[Atmob-discuss] Clay Center Observatory - Public Night - View Comet Holmes

[Virginia Renehan]

The following message is from Bob Phinney at Clay Center Observatory:

Details: Doors open at 6:00 pm. Sunset is 5:41 pm. No moon up; rises 9:26 pm in east 70% illumination. Jupiter sets at 7:56 pm. Come see Comet Holmes tonight! It is the comet that flared up suddenly a few days ago. Iridium Flare at 7:17 pm. Dress warmly. If weather is questionable, call 617-454-2795 one hour before the event for a recorded message.

** Comet Holmes: Comet '17P' Magnitude= 2.9mag RA= 3h47m17 Dec=+50°29.3' (J2000) Distance to Sun= 2.46AU Distance to Earth= 1.62AU Elongation=139° hourly motion: dRA=-24.9"/h dDec= 6.4"/h

** Iridium 29 at 7:17 pm: Flare from MMA2 (Left antenna) Magnitude=-1.6mag Azimuth= 23.7° NNE altitude= 41.8° in constellation Cassiopeia. Height above Earth=785.8km
Comet Holmes Beckons Skygazers Worldwide
Amateur astronomers the world over have been stunned and amazed by the weirdest new object to appear in the sky in memory. And it's one of the brightest, too - it's easy to spot with your eyes alone if you know where to look.

Less than a week ago periodic Comet Holmes (17P) brightened dramatically - by nearly a million times - virtually overnight. For no apparent reason, the comet erupted from a very dim magnitude 17 to about magnitude 2½. Within a day its starlike nucleus had expanded into a perfectly round, bright little disk visible in binoculars and telescopes. It looked like no comet ever seen.

Read more: http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/home/10775326.html 
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