Lake Sonoma last night (19 Jun 2004)

by Robert Leyland


A few of us non-SSP participants had a great time at Lake Sonoma this Saturday.

It was the best night at the site for some time, as there were no clouds, no wind, and very clear skies. The only spoilers were a touch of humidity, and one inquisitive motorist with bright headlights, sigh.

For me it was a two comet evening as I located both C2003/K4 and C2001/Q4. K4 was a scant 5 degrees from M92 in Hercules, not visible in the finder or binoculars, but fairly easily seen in the 17" telescope. It appeared to be a magnitude or two less bright than expected, around 9-10. Its short tail providing a strong asymmetric aspect, with an undifferentiated nucleus.

Q4 in Ursa Major was a different story. Easily located in binoculars, near the front 'knee' of the bear, and a very nice sight in the telescope. Once found I could see it naked eye, only just with direct vision, easier with averted. The head of the comet showed a fuzzy nucleus where a few months ago it had been pin-point bright. I couldn't see a second tail.

Comets are cool!


Posted on sf-bay-tac Jun 20, 2004 11:35:18 PT
Converted by report.pm 1.2 Jan 04, 2005 19:24:34 PT