Location: Prince of Wales, NB, Canada
Date Time: September 30, 2024 0530-0700hrs
Weather: Calm, no wind, clear except for some ground fog in places, no bugs, very dark at 0530, 12.2C and 89% humidity in Saint John at 0500hrs, 8C at 0630 in POW. Very good viewing conditions.
Equipment: Telescope 80 ed/apo with camera attached, 20x80 binoculars and a Canon Rebel T3 with 18-55mm lens. Images processed through PhotoShop.
Objective: To view and image Comet C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-Atlas which is reported to be rising in the eastern, morning sky. Also to image bright stars that are present.
Report: After scanning the area where comet is reported to be, many times with binoculars, and taking many images of this region of sky, I could not find any sign of this comet, which is reportedly 2.2 magnitude.
The nearby, waning crescent Moon, which is below the hook of Leo, was spectacular.
- At 0607 hrs a bright shooting star came unexpectedly straight down from up high in the northern sky. Jupiter brightness, yellowish, fast and left a smoke trail that hung in the air for several seconds afterwards.
- Pegasus was low in the west at 0530hrs. I could make out four stars within the great square, which means that one can see as faint as a 4th magnitude star, or a "limiting factor of 4". Markab (Alpha Pegasi) was just over the horizon.
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| Facing west, the Great Square of Pegasus. |
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| Markab |
- Rigel in Orion, Sirius, Jupiter & Taurus are all nicely placed in the South Eastern pre-dawn sky. Jupiter is very high, almost straight up. I imaged Sirius and Rigel with same camera settings to show the brightness difference. Interesting how these two stars appear the same brilliant, bluish-white color. Sirius is the brightest star in the sky and Rigel is the 7th brightest. I also imaged Sirius with a short exposure to try to spit it's other star, Sirius B.
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| Jupiter high over Orion & Sirius. |
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| Rigel |
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| Sirius |
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| Sirius, short exposure & cropped to try to spit Sirius B. |
