Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF)

[Southern Storm]

So many great photos have been posted in the past few days, and hopefully many more to come !

After a few sleepless nights last week, I needed to recharge the batteries... in every sense, so I didn't even try to get out and shoot the comet... plus the weather hasn't really been good enough anyway 

I'm up doing a late one this morning though, as the weather is almost perfect, bar a slight breeze, and who knows how many more evenings of good weather we'll get before E3 starts to fade away, so I'm making the most of this evening, even if I do have to be at work in 4 hours  

It not every day you get to see a comet as beautiful as this one!  

Will post tonight's results later this evening if all goes well

[Dreckly]

This guy is an astrophotographer, this is a thread which includes processed images of ZTF. Really interesting.

https://twitter.com/AJamesMcCarthy/status/1616126106545029121?s=20&t=lo6mGtUMf9k17-gH2UrFNg

 

[Southern Storm]

So here is my latest effort..  only 40 x 50 second subs, so it didn't take too long to stack 

Shot at 600mm, Sigma 150-600mm Canon Eos r 

Conditions were almost perfect, with the Comet quite high in the sky, so not a great deal of light pollution to image through 

But it's almost impossible not to have at least some Light pollution showing up.

I think I'm reaching the limits of my setup, and any hopes of getting some really detailed images of the trail are probably out of reach.. plus I really need to improve my post processing, as I don't think I'm extracting the maximum out of the data I've gathered, but I'm still relatively new to this game, so lot to learn! Any advice welcome.

 

[Arnie Pie]

3 hours ago, Southern Storm said:

I think I'm reaching the limits of my setup

I tried opening the taps fully open for this mornings shoot and was presently surprised

20" @ 4.0f - ISO 1600- LP filter fitted  WB 5200K- lens @ 95mm

Batch processed with Raw Therapee 

60 stacked (Sequator 160)

(all free to use software)

 

still trying to post process the rest of the images from this morning

edit; Lovely capture Scott

'DSS comet mode' I'm guessing 

Edited January 26, 2023 by Arnie Pie

[Arnie Pie]

14 hours ago, SNOW_JOKE said:

but I do have a second-hand 300mm on the way by the 31st to practise manual focus with

Nice clear shot from up there

On the subject of manual focusing

My old eyes used a Bahtinov Mask on my lens for the first time this week

it works a treat, and would recommend one

[The Tall Weatherman]

Amazing images here on the forum ! Quite new to astrophotography so it is not a fine art piece. Although quite impressed with the image especially as I used a canon kit lens on maximum 55mm zoom. Will be getting a hopefully better lens soon

[Southern Storm]

On 26/01/2023 at 14:33, Arnie Pie said:

I tried opening the taps fully open for this mornings shoot and was presently surprised

20" @ 4.0f - ISO 1600- LP filter fitted  WB 5200K- lens @ 95mm

Batch processed with Raw Therapee 

60 stacked (Sequator 160)

(all free to use software)

 

still trying to post process the rest of the images from this morning

edit; Lovely capture Scott

'DSS comet mode' I'm guessing 

Thanks, yes it was stacked in comet mode, I was thinking of comet and Stars, but I takes a lot longer, and I'm way too impatient   

Lovely shot you took there! Looking forward to seeing the rest

did you have to shoot towards Birmingham? I imagine light pollution is a pain in the backside! And if so, how much does the LP filter help?

I know they were very affective with traditional street lighting, and the wavelength they emit, I'm wondering if the move to LED lighting is going to make it harder to filter out light pollution, as the spectrum of light they produce is much broader.  

They turn off the street lamps in my area just after midnight, but I'm still picking light pollution in my shots, it's so annoying

Edited January 27, 2023 by Southern Storm

[Arnie Pie]

28 minutes ago, Southern Storm said:

did you have to shoot towards Birmingham? I imagine light pollution is a pain in the backside! And if so, how much does the LP filter help?

The position in the sky of the comet was directly over the 'Bull Ring', albeit at an altitude around 50°.

This meant that the camera was facing more to the vertical and over the main dome of LP, this helped a little, although my local surrounding are still at a Bortles of 7

I did try without the LP filter last week but only produced images that where full of noise and beyond my processing knowledge to correct.

From my experience with NLC`s the filter works and I'm impressed with the images of the comet, especially after stacking (maybe I'm just used to seeing noise in my night photos

When I attempt to stack with DSS and access the comet feature, it fails to pick up on the comet when pointed at.

I think this is because of the LP noise caught in my RAW file

I`ve been binge watching YouTube tutorials on the subject, but now my heads beginning to hurt

The easiest stacking software I've found is Sequator 160

[Southern Storm]

9 minutes ago, Arnie Pie said:

The position in the sky of the comet was directly over the 'Bull Ring', albeit at an altitude around 50°.

This meant that the camera was facing more to the vertical and over the main dome of LP, this helped a little, although my local surrounding are still at a Bortles of 7

I did try without the LP filter last week but only produced images that where full of noise and beyond my processing knowledge to correct.

From my experience with NLC`s the filter works and I'm impressed with the images of the comet, especially after stacking (maybe I'm just used to seeing noise in my night photos

When I attempt to stack with DSS and access the comet feature, it fails to pick up on the comet when pointed at.

I think this is because of the LP noise caught in my RAW file

I`ve been binge watching YouTube tutorials on the subject, but now my heads beginning to hurt

The easiest stacking software I've found is Sequator 160

Yeah it's such a shame, I lived in Stirchley/selly oak for roughly 3 years and I was shocked at how bad the light pollution was.

Ironically, I actually worked at the bullring,  in the Dixon's XL store

I'm going to look into getting a light pollution filter, and a Bahtinov Mask.. something I've known I should pick up for a while now, but not gotten round to.

The weather is clear here, how is it looking up your way? 

Just like NLCs, you have to make the most of any opportunities to crop up (especially  with a comet) so I'll be setting up soon. 

Good luck if you're planning to shoot this evening 

[Weather-history]

Seen the comet and incredibly could see it move against the background stars even over a very short period. 

[Weather-history]

46 minutes ago, Weather-history said:

Seen the comet and incredibly could see it move against the background stars even over a very short period. 

[Arnie Pie]

2 hours ago, Southern Storm said:

Ironically, I actually worked at the bullring,

Yo count as a Brummie then

Cloudy here and not looking promising

My LP filters are K&F Concept Clear Natural Night Light Pollution

One for my EF 24-105mm and one for my EF 70-300

Middle of the price road when I bought them a couple of years ago, so there`s a couple more 'advanced' on the market now. see

There`s a couple of YouTube tutorials on light pollution by The Urban Astronomer

Good luck for tonight

Edit could be interesting 

LIVE COMET C/2022 E3 (ZTE) With a Dobsonian Telescope

Edited January 27, 2023 by Arnie Pie

[Jamie M]

Considerably brighter since the last time I viewed it in the binos

Hopped 2 stars from Ursa Minor 

Faint blob but definitely more noticeable, could see it without using averted vision. 

[Sprites]

Dorset has some quite dark skies at Bortle 4. Here it's 5+ in town, or 4 about 10 miles from the  town. I've taken all my Comet photos from home. Not too many clear nights in the forecast. 

Might have to wait until February when the Comet passes Mars and Taurus. 

[Weather-history]

8 hours ago, Weather-history said:

[Jamie M]

Very rough process of the comet

[Arnie Pie]

nice catch Jamie

livestream coverage and chat

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDDYkSXOY6o

constant comet view

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qPoRCo_AZQ

 

[Arnie Pie]

On 28/01/2023 at 04:35, Sprites said:

I've taken all my Comet photos from home. Not too many clear nights in the forecast. 

Might have to wait until February when the Comet passes Mars and Taurus. 

Yes mate think so

Time to get the tripod out..... and wait for my new battery`s/ battery grip to arrive

(mistake`s learnt from my 'Mars/ Moon occultation adventure.) 

Some very photogenic opportunities around the 10/11 where the Comet is positioned more to the West, next to Mars with a backdrop of the Milky way

Happy hunting

[Sprites]

By the time the cloud clears around here, it will be less bright. Recently it's about Mag 4.6

SpaceWeather.com -- News and information about meteor showers, solar flares, auroras, and near-Earth asteroids

WWW.SPACEWEATHER.COM

 

[Southern Storm]

Nice to see this thread is ticking along nicely, with lots of great photos of C/2022 E3  

Unfortunately we have reached the point that we have all been dreading, and that is the arrival of Atlantic fronts, and a waxing moon .. 

I have decided to prepare for the second faze of C/2022 E3 when it becomes a predominantly early evening target. 

So today I went all Blue Peter and made a Bahtinov mask, one for my Sigma 150-600.. and one for my Samyang 135, and it  appears to work a treat

I've also performed a bit of maintenance on my sky adventurer Pro, as there were a few loose screws which would definitely have been affecting the tracking accuracy. 

hopefully we will have some decent weather on the 10th, as the comet will be in close proximity to the Pleiades and Mars, it should make a great wide field shot

Edited January 29, 2023 by Southern Storm

[Jamie M]

20 minutes ago, Southern Storm said:

Nice to see this thread is ticking along nicely, with lots of great photos of C/2022 E3  

Unfortunately we have reached the point that we have all been dreading, and that is the arrival of Atlantic fronts, and a waxing moon .. 

So I have decided to prepare for the second faze of C/2022 E3 when it becomes a predominantly early evening target. 

So today I went all Blue Peter and made a Bahtinov mask, one for my Sigma 150-600.. and one for my Samyang 135, and it  appears to work a treat

I've also performed a bit of maintenance on my sky adventurer Pro, as there were a few loose screws which would definitely have been affecting the tracking accuracy. 

hopefully we will have some decent weather on the 10th, as the comet will be in close proximity to the Pleiades and Mars, it should make a great wide field shot

Good DIY work there mate, I'd have fumbled it immediately. 

[Southern Storm]

35 minutes ago, Jamie M said:

Good DIY work there mate, I'd have fumbled it immediately. 

That's version three! 

I'm looking forward to giving it a proper test, to see how well it works, before I invest in a more robust one.

Hopefully we will have high pressure in charge soon, E3 will slowly start to dim any day now, it would be a great shame to miss out on the best of it, all because of the weather

Having said that, one of the things I've noticed lately....  it doesn't matter what type of natural phenomenon we're all interested in, on here, Snow, Comets, NLCs, Thunderstorms, You're always on the chase!

Love it 

 

Edited January 29, 2023 by Southern Storm

[Sprites]

29-1-23   9pm

 

I could see the Comet with binoculars despite the 60% moon. 

I took this with my pixel 4a phone on a tripod earlier tonight. Clouded up now.

 

[Jamie M]

17 hours ago, Southern Storm said:

That's version three! 

I'm looking forward to giving it a proper test, to see how well it works, before I invest in a more robust one.

Hopefully we will have high pressure in charge soon, E3 will slowly start to dim any day now, it would be a great shame to miss out on the best of it, all because of the weather

Having said that, one of the things I've noticed lately....  it doesn't matter what type of natural phenomenon we're all interested in, on here, Snow, Comets, NLCs, Thunderstorms, You're always on the chase!

Love it 

 

Aye I'm always looking for something interesting to observe. Have to ease the boredom somehow 

That being said the star tracker is coming out for the first time in months tonight 

[Jamie M]

Lovely stuff, only got it on 20 second exposures as I've shoddily done the polar alignment