Object: Comet C/2009 P1 Garradd
Equipment: FSQ-106N on Astro-Physics 1200GTO
mount; SBIG ST-8300
Exposure/Processing: 4 x 180s RGB each; 7 x 180s luminance;
Processed Maxim DL and Photoshop.
Location/Date: CSPG Chiefland
Fall Star Party, 29 October 2011
Comment: Comet C/2009 P1 Garradd was discoved by G. J. Garradd (Siding Spring Observatory, Australia) in images obtained on 2009 August 13 with a 0.5-m Uppsala Schmidt telescope and a CCD camera. Comet nuclei range from a few hundred meters to tens of kilometers across and are composed of loose collections of ice, dust, and small rocky particles. When close enough to the Sun, comets display a visible coma (a thin, fuzzy, temporary atmosphere) and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena are both due to the effects of solar radiation and the solar wind upon the nucleus of the comet. The orbit of C/2009 P1 Garradd was established as being hyperbolic with a perihelion date of 2011 December 23. The comet will be closest to Earth on 2012 March 5 (1.27 AU). An astronomical unit (AU) is the average distance between the Earth and Sun or 149,597,870.7 kilometres (92,955,807.3 miles.) |
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