CATCH LITTLE COMET LINEAR IN JULY !
There’s a little comet discovered by the LINEAR program, passing from Draco into Bootes this month, high in the sky and very well placed for imaging.
The comet is faint (magnitude 9 at the moment, according to Skyhound) but as it passes something bright, there’s an opportunity to get a pretty interesting image. July 11-12 the comet will be less than a degree from 3rd magnitude star Iota Draconis, overhead. 10 days later the comet will come within 1/4 degree from the bright globular cluster M3 (the globular E of Arcturus).
Imagers, here’s your chance! See the chart below:
UPDATE 12 JULY:
I discovered the little green Comet Linear in an image of the sky around Iota Draconis taken last night – a 2 minute exposure at ISO1600 taken with a Digital Rebel and 50mm Nikon lens, piggyback on the TAL clockdriven mount. No tail, but the comet is quite visible:
UPDATE 24 JULY:
Longer exposures through an 8″ Schmidt-Newtonian scope (and stacking many images) obtained on 24 July show the comet has two stubby tails, one with knots that may be pieces broken off the comet nucleus. A faint spiral galaxy appears just below the comet:
