Comet ISON watch (another heavenly body!)

Let's not kill her off too soon :

http://www.cometison2013.co.uk/perihelion-and-distance/

(29-11-2013 12:10 )elgar1uk Wrote:  

(28-11-2013 22:33 )circles_o_o_o Wrote:  Maybe start another thread in 76 years,then.

What happens in 76 years time? In any event news reports today say that ISON may have survived after all.

Yes, they think now that a bit of it is still going but it's still looking as if it's going to be a disappointment after all the hype.

I think the 76 years refers to Halley

(29-11-2013 16:31 )mr williams Wrote:  

(29-11-2013 12:10 )elgar1uk Wrote:  

(28-11-2013 22:33 )circles_o_o_o Wrote:  Maybe start another thread in 76 years,then.

What happens in 76 years time? In any event news reports today say that ISON may have survived after all.

Yes, they think now that a bit of it is still going but it's still looking as if it's going to be a disappointment after all the hype.

I think the 76 years refers to Halley

Halley's comet was rubbish last time it appeared.
I've only ever seen one decent comet. That was Hale-Bopp in 1997.

Here's a nice photo of Hale-Bopp with its distinctive twin tail :



There was also an asteroid in 1996 called Charon(?).
I happened to be out in the Hebrides at the time and it was pretty clear too.

The NASA obituary notice :

"Never one to follow convention, ISON lived a dynamic and unpredictable life,

Alternating between periods of quiet reflection and violent outburst. However,

its toughened exterior belied a complex and delicate inner working that only now

we are just beginning to understand. In late 2013, Comet ISON demonstrated not

only its true beauty but a surprising turn of speed as it reached its career

defining moment in the inner solar system.

"Tragically, on November 28, 2013, ISON's tenacious ambition outweighed its

ability, and our shining green candle in the solar wind began to burn out."