Posted by
michael
on from the head-in-the-stars dept.
TrinSF writes "SFGate.com, run by the San Francisco Chronicle, has a story on Comet Ikeya-Zhang. It's on a 350 year cycle, and should be visible to the naked eye in some places over the next few weeks. Here's a gallery of pictures, too."
Re:hopes for us on the right coast (pun intended)
by
suss
·
· Score: 3, Informative
Well, those of us on the East coast missed out on the Leonids, is there any hopes of us seeing this?
It's a comet, not a meteor shower. I can't see it with the naked eye here (52 degrees north), but it's visible with binoculars. Hyakutake and Hale-Bopp were much easier to find...
Re:"Clenched fist"
by
ryants
·
· Score: 3, Informative
A clenched fist at arm's length covers about 10 degrees of sky. The sun moves about 10 degrees / hour, so seeing how many "fists" from the sun to the horizon gives a good approximation the number of hours of daylight left.
Note: this is all from hazy memory, so I may be wrong.
--
Ryan T. Sammartino "Ancora imparo"
Re:Tracking interplanetary objects?
by
pfalstad
·
· Score: 4, Informative
Home Planet does a good job, and has an orrery display as well as a sky view.
you'll also want the orbital elements, which can be put into the cometnew.csv file so you know where all the latest comets are (including Ikeya-Zhang)
Re:Tracking interplanetary objects?
by
ender81b
·
· Score: 3, Informative
If you make a open-source program, email it to me. I'd love to try it out. bill_dinger@N.O.S.P.A.M.yahoo.com
Re:Tracking interplanetary objects?
by
Shooter6947
·
· Score: 3, Informative
Use Xephem -- you download and compile the source 'cuz it was developed for Unix systems, hence its Linux & FreeBSD friendly. Its also a FreeBSDport, which makes it trivial for you to install should you be so fortunate as to be running that OS.
More Pics of Ikeya-Zhang
by
slinted
·
· Score: 2, Informative
APOD ran a great picture of Ikeya-Zhang last monday, showing how much it has flaired up since coming into the stronger solar wind. Their links give more info about the comet for those interested in such things.
Slashdot Mirror
There's a viewers guide to the comet that might come in handy at Space.com
--Metrollica
Well, those of us on the East coast missed out on the Leonids, is there any hopes of us seeing this?
It's a comet, not a meteor shower. I can't see it with the naked eye here (52 degrees north), but it's visible with binoculars. Hyakutake and Hale-Bopp were much easier to find...
Note: this is all from hazy memory, so I may be wrong.
Ryan T. Sammartino
"Ancora imparo"
Home Planet does a good job, and has an orrery display as well as a sky view. you'll also want the orbital elements, which can be put into the cometnew.csv file so you know where all the latest comets are (including Ikeya-Zhang)
Links to seti@home area for sky maps.
Because any discussion of orbital mechanics will run into the pages I suggest you visit these sites:
if that doesn't help try these
If you make a open-source program, email it to me. I'd love to try it out. bill_dinger@N.O.S.P.A.M.yahoo.com
Use Xephem -- you download and compile the source 'cuz it was developed for Unix systems, hence its Linux & FreeBSD friendly. Its also a FreeBSD port, which makes it trivial for you to install should you be so fortunate as to be running that OS.
APOD ran a great picture of Ikeya-Zhang last monday, showing how much it has flaired up since coming into the stronger solar wind. Their links give more info about the comet for those interested in such things.