A NEWS YEARS COMET

Location:  Front Deck in Little Lepreau, NB, Canada

Date Time:  January 2, 2016 0530-0620hrs

Weather:  Mostly clear, no wind and a very cool -4C

Equipment:  Canadian Telescopes 80 ED/APO on an alt/az Vixen Mount.  Adapter for Canon Rebel Xsi.  19mm eyepiece.

Attendence:  Myself

Objective:  To view and image Comet Catalina C/2013 US10 which was reported to be above Arcturus according to Heavens-above.com

Highlights:

• The comet was easily located above Arturus in the viewscreen of the camera as it was attached to telescope.  Showed up as a faint fuzzy patch.  Images were taken that clearly showed the Comet to have a greenish hew with a bright center.
• At around 0600hrs, a very bright Venus popped over the trees in the SE.  Images were taken.  It was clearly in the Gibbous phase.
• A nearly half Moon was high in the South at the time and wasnt bright enough to wash out Comet.  Images of Moon were taken.
• After imaging, a 19mm eyepiece was inserted and the Comet was observed.  It showed up as a fuzzy slightly greenish, large fuzzball with a bright center.  With averted vision, a very faint, wide tail might have been seen going in the 3'oclock direction from the center.
• No Shooting stars and one satelite was seen as I was viewing the comet in the eyepiece.

Image:

Unprocessed image of Comet.

Processed image shows a faint fan tail going to the right.

Image of Orion Nebula taken evening before, just before clouds moved in.