Observation by Nick James: 46P and the Pleiades

Uploaded by

Nick James

Observer

Nick James

Observed

2018 Dec 16 - 01:06

Uploaded

2018 Dec 16 - 09:29

Objects

The Pleiades (M45)
46P Wirtanen

Planetarium overlay

Enable overlay
Show stars
Label stars
Show deep sky objects
Label deep sky objects
Show constellation boundaries
Show constellation sticks
Show constellation labels
Show RA/Dec grid

Constellation

Taurus

Field centre

RA: 03^h58^m
Dec: +22°04'
Position angle: -0°03'

Field size

7°05' × 7°51'

Equipment

Sony A7s + 200mm, f/2.8L lens

Exposure

20x30s

Location

Chelmsford, UK

Target name

46P/Wirtanen

Title

46P and the Pleiades

About this image

This diffuse comet is now at its closest and brightest and is passing M45. This is a crop of an image obtained with a 200mm f/2.8 lens and a Sony alpha-7S last night.

Files associated with this observation

46p_20181216_0106_ndj.jpg (1.4 MB)

Like this image

Comments

David Swan, 2018 Dec 16 - 12:40 UTC

Excellent image Nick - and I'm jealous you had a clear patch when these objects were in conjunction. I see the diameter of the coma is - rather conveniently - very comparable to the 'long axis' of the Pleiades, about 1 1/2 deg. David

Nick James, 2018 Dec 16 - 14:25 UTC

Yes, I thought last night was going to be a writre-off but it cleared here just before midnight. Doesn't look good tonight though for the closest approach to M45. It is good to be able to compare sizes.

Steve Knight, 2018 Dec 16 - 18:04 UTC

Incredible! Forecast shows some clear patches tonight so was going to have a go. Go on depress me by tellping me what insane ISO you were working at. Not too insane I hope! Ahh, spotted it on image. ISO1600. Feeling happier! Steve

Copyright of all images and other observations submitted to the BAA remains with the owner of the work. Reproduction of work by third parties is expressly forbidden without the consent of the copyright holder. By submitting images to this online gallery, you grant the BAA permission to reproduce them in any of our publications.

Registered charity no. 210769
Registered company no. 117572

For more information including contact details, click here.

Our Terms of Use are here.

Our Privacy Policy is here.