Observation by Nick James: C/2023 A3

Uploaded by

Nick James

Observer

Nick James

Observed

2024 Oct 19 - 18:15

Uploaded

2024 Oct 20 - 08:06

Objects

C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS)

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Constellation

Ophiuchus

Field centre

RA: 16^h31^m
Dec: +03°17'
Position angle: +2°50'

Field size

8° × 5°

Equipment

Sony A7s iii, Redcat 51

Exposure

31x15s

Location

Chelmsford, UK

Target name

C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS)

Title

C/2023 A3

About this image

My first post-perihelion opportunity to observe this comet from my garden in Chelmsford. The comet is easy to find in binoculars but I couldn't see it naked-eye from here. Comphot gives a magnitude of 4.6. It was a lovely, clear evening although I did have a nearby firework display causing bright flashes for part of the time and some cirrus in the critical direction. I had four cameras running including the one on my main telescope which shows a lot of detail in the central coma.

This image is a Sony A7s on a RedCat 51 giving a FoV of around 8.2 x 5.5 deg. It shows the anti-tail, now quite diffuse and significantly offset in PA since we are out of the comet's orbital plane and a long, broad, dust tail with some structure.

The comet is bright enough to appear on my west-pointing meteor camera. Here is a video clip from that. The comet is near the left hand edge above the "18" in the timecode. The Starlink train is from the G9-7 launch which occurred on October 15.

Files associated with this observation

2023a3_20241019_181514_ndj.jpg (4.7 MB)

Like this image

Nick Quinn, Mike Foulkes, James Weightman, Callum Potter, Brendan Tynan, Jimmy Fraser, Martina McGovern, Peter Carson

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