As you have probably heard by now, Comet 29P (or the Schwassmann-Wachmann comet) went into a large outburst on Feb 3rd. This outburst was first discovered by an amateur astronomer from Spain only a few hours after it had begun. It as visible all over Ireland for a brief moment, and excited a lot of interest on the news.
Richard Miles of the British Astronomical Association (BAA) has asked for help from the Faulkes telescope with observing the effects of this outburst. The outburst seems to consist of some parts of the comet's massive icy nucleus breaking off, leading to a huge outpouring of ice and a brightening of the comet.
The schools involved were contacted with information and observing times.
We have a session booked for today, and tomorrow, on the southern telescope, but it is unlikely we will be able to observe in this time because the telescope is closed due to bad weather. This is very annoying for us, as it is not the first time we have been unable to take part in observations like this.
Hoping for clear skies in Siding Springs tomorrow!
Jes team
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
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Just wanted to say...well done for the competition - you did good!
ReplyDeleteI came across your blog on the Faulkes website, since I am particularly interested in microlensing used to find extrasolar planets...
We, at Uplands Community College, Wadhurst, also have a school astronomy blog at Astronomical Uplands.
We have linked to your blog, with the hope of developing a school community spirit :)
You are welcome to come and tell us what you think of it!
"Amazing Concept about pulsar, star, x-rays, supernova & capture-theory read more…..
ReplyDeleteRich Levinson The Binary X-Ray Pulsar Guy
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