Posted on 10/06/2024 11:51:28 AM PDT by MtnClimber
Explanation: Comet McNaught, the Great Comet of 2007, grew a spectacularly long and filamentary tail. The magnificent tail spread across the sky and was visible for several days to Southern Hemisphere observers just after sunset. The amazing ion tail showed its greatest extent on long-duration, wide-angle camera exposures. During some times, just the tail itself was visible just above the horizon for many northern observers as well. Comet C/2006 P1 (McNaught), estimated to have attained a peak brightness of magnitude -5 (minus five), was caught by the comet's discoverer in the featured image just after sunset in January 2007 from Siding Spring Observatory in Australia. Comet McNaught, the brightest comet in decades, then faded as it moved further into southern skies and away from the Sun and Earth. Over the next month, Comet Tsuchinshan–ATLAS, a candidate for the Great Comet of 2024, should display its most spectacular tails visible from the Earth.
For more detail go to the link and click on the image for a high definition image. You can then move the magnifying glass cursor then click to zoom in and click again to zoom out. When zoomed in you can scan by moving the side bars on the bottom and right side of the image.
🪐 🌟 🌌 🍔
nice
The photo is from the astronomer who discovered the comet.
Wow.
Magnificent, yes. All uppercase, IMHO.
That tail looks more like porcupine quills.
You have to work a cheeseburger into the description somehow. Maybe it was a porcupine trying to steal a cheeseburger in a pine tree...
Wow!!!!
Impressive!
Unfortunately, this picture is from Australia.
We in the US and in all Northern Hemisphere did not get too much of it.
Comet seems to possess some poly-organic-chem material.
Surf’s Up! WOW! :)
That comet is drifting.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.