[meteorite-list] How to Watch July 4 Comet Impact

From: Gerald Flaherty <grf2_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Sat Jun 4 13:13:44 2005
Message-ID: <002901c56928$be3b41d0$2f01a8c0_at_Dell>

Doug, YOU THE MAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!jerry
----- Original Message -----
From: <MexicoDoug_at_aol.com>
To: <baalke_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>
Cc: <meteorite-list_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Sent: Friday, June 03, 2005 3:46 PM
Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] How to Watch July 4 Comet Impact


Ron Baalke kindly forwards:

>Although it is now moving away from the Earth, the comet
>is still approaching the Sun, so its overall brightness in the
>coming days and weeks will appear to change very little, if at all.
>The comet is expected to hover at around tenth-magnitude,
>meaning that it will glow about 40 times dimmer than a
>star that is at the threshold of visibility
>with the unaided eye.

10th magnitude and a comet to boot is normally a difficult casual object
where you get a stiff neck and crossed eyes without a decent amateur scope,
should you not be luck to have one in your possession. So, if NASA's
fireworks
prove not to be the mesmerizing conflagration we all hope (except that
astrologer who is suing to save the comet), for casual earth watchers,
there is
still a heavenly party week for most on the list not to miss! Brilliant
and
infrequently seen Mercury and vividly resplendent Venus will get so
intimate they
will practically become one (and no Star charts needs No not even
binoculars
needed - but they would be fun... if you know where the Sun sets...that's
where the action picks up right at dark - and don't dawdle too much):

The other memorialized configuration will occur simultaneousy with a chance
to see Mercury in the skirt-tails of Venus - incredibly close as Saturn
peeps
away for the season. Mercury and Venus will be sooooooo close (how
close???
 a third of a full Moon length away, and even less in Europe), and will be
quite bright (Mercury 0th magnitude - same as a bright Mars and 2.5X more
than
Saturn). Not to mention Venus near her brightest ever at -4th magnitude.
That will happen on June 27 in the little constellation of the birthday
folks,
Cancer. I wonder what is in store for the Cancer horoscope this time
around. By the 3rd/4th of July Venus and Mercury will still be very close
and a
sight to see following the Sun, since Mercury is basically coming into view
from the Sun's brilliance on one of these rare ocassions with sufficient
viewing
angle from earth. And 4 fists (40 degrees) away along the ecliptic (only 2
constellations away) NASA will of course be brazenly auditioning live on
stage with these ancient Planetary Gods of the celestial entertainment
network.
Saturn (a slim 2 or 3 degrees away) will make a great but weak addition to
them for a m?nage ? trois, at the first magnitude throught the
Venus-Mercury
encounter. And from July 5-7, when you come back for another view, a
nascent
crescent Moon will appear smack dab in the center of Cancer. You know- one
of
those beautiful Ramadan desert type Moons...July 5-6 will be a day woth
finding some clear, dark skies!! And it won't be anyones funeral. Happy
Birthday Johnstown (Jul 6) and NASA, in the immortal words of General
Prescott, from
the British-American War of Independence, "Don't fire until you see the
whites of her eyes!" What a line-up!
Saludos, Doug
PS Jupiter will still be hanging in Virgo and you can use him to trace the
Solar planetary ecliptic. After you see Venus, Mercury and Saturn and
maybe
the Moon, just paint an imaginary line from them until you reach Jupiter
three
fists away. The next bright star if you extend the line after Jupiter is
Spica, a pretty hue of white-blue, practically along the ecliptic, too
(Don't
confuse with the red brighter star Arcturus way off ecliptic). Half a fist
more is NASA territory The comet will cross the ecliptic on July 5-6,
about 4
degrees from Spica (inside most binoculars field of view). In other words,
as long as you don't stand upside down in New Zealand or something like
that,
in the early evening until about 2:00 AM, if you put Spica in your
binoculars
at the lower right (4:30 position), wide field binoculars will place the
comet in the middle, and narrow field binoculars will place it diagonally
at the
upper left (10:30 position). In New Zealand, just put it at the lower left
and look for the comet diagonally at the upper right). And for the trivia,
Spica Virginis translates to the Virgin's Ear of Corn...or maybe sheaf of
wheat...or spike (of grain)...

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Received on Sat 04 Jun 2005 01:13:35 PM PDT