Comet 17P/Holmes burst onto the astronomy scene just three weeks ago. In that time, its captured the attention of astronomers worldwide. Brightening one million fold literally overnight, the comet has grown steadily as well. From its earliest days, Comet Holmes has proved to be far more interesting than almost anyone would have imagined.

Here are a couple of interesting pictures taken last night. Both of these were taken using my Canon Rebel XTi. The first was what I went out to capture, Comet 17P/Holmes passing by the bright star Mirfak (α Per). As you can see, the star appears within the growing expanse of the comet. Set against a background of stars in the constellation Perseus, the comet continues on its merry way.

While I was out, I figured I might as well snag a shot of the waxing gibbous moon. Since it was dominating the night sky, I figured I might as well catch a couple of shots. Views of the moon were particularly crisp last night as well. I’d heard people compare the growing size of Comet Holmes to the moon, so I figured I’d compare images. Low and behold, the comet was at least as big, if not bigger than the moon!

I processed both images separately in Gimp (linux version now and then created a new image that was exactly twice the size of the originals. I then did a select all and copy and paste for each. As you can see, the two are almost an identical size. I actually have a slightly over processed version of the comet that shows it to be a bit larger than even this image indicates. I had a problem with that image and time prevented me from re-processing and using that image.

Anyway, if you’ve not gotten out to view the comet yet, now is as good a time as any, perhaps better. As the comet is almost sitting on top of Mirfak, the brightest star in the constellation Perseus, it is even easier to find than usual. Simply head outside after dark and look to the northeast. Perseus is due east of the ‘W’ shaped constellation Cassiopia. Many people are familiar with its signature shape. Due east of Perseus is the constellation Auriga lit up by bright Capella. Once you’ve identified Perseus, Mirfak is the brightest star in the constellation (along the northern ‘edge’ of stars). You likely won’t see Comet Holmes at this point as the brightness of Mirfak tends to obscure it. As the two separate in the coming days, the comet should reappear. This is a beautiful binocular or telescope object. If you have access to optics of any size, be sure to point these towards the scene. At roughly the size of the moon, this is one large object to digest. In larger telescopes, Comet Holmes will fill your eyepieces from edge to edge. This is a sweet sight. I don’t know how long the show will last, but the constellation Perseus will be visible at night through the winter. Be sure to take as many views of the comet as you can. It will undoubtedly be changing considerably over the coming weeks and months.

Astro Photo Details:

* Designation: Comet 17P/Holmes
* Constellation: Perseus
* Magnitude: 2.5
* Size: 15′ (roughly 1/2 the diameter of the full moon!)

* Designation: The Moon
* Constellation: Perseus
* Magnitude: roughly mag -8
* Size: roughly 1/2*

Astro Photo Processing Details

* Canon Digital Rebel XTi
* Astro Physics Refractor
* 1 x 60s exposure at ISO1600 (comet)
* 1 x 1/15s exposure at ISO100 (moon)
* Gimp Levels and Curves

1. reinhold puttinger, November 22, 2007:

   great pictures!
   greetings from vienna/austria

2. Dr. Eric Flescher, January 17, 2008:

   Nicely done. I have seen others who have superimposed both. I am working on mine. Congrats

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