|
Summary: In Early
March 2002, Comet Ikeya-Zhang became a naked-eye fuzzball in the evening
sky. It soon brightened to 3rd magnitude and delighted sky watchers
with its remarkable photogenic tail. The comet even had a stunning close
encounter with the Andromeda Galaxy. But all good things must come to
an end. On April 30th, Ikeya-Zhang made its closest approach to Earth
(0.41 AU) and since then has been receding toward the outer solar system.
The fading fuzzball now (on May 2, 2002) glows like a 5th
magnitude star at the limit of naked-eye visibility. Soon it will
be impossible to see without a telescope. So farewell, Ikeya-Zhang!
It was a great show while it lasted.
|
Spaceweather.com
wishes to thank all those who submitted to the Comet Ikeya-Zhang
gallery! The comet is now fading, and the gallery is now closed
to submissions.
|
 |
|
|
Unless
otherwise stated, all images are copyrighted by the photographers.
| |
Photographer, Location,
Date |
Larger images |
Comments |
|
|
Kris
Koenig,
Glens Falls, New York
April 1 |
#1 |
An image of Comet Ikeya-Zhang taken
by Kris Koenig at the Kiwanis Chico Community Observatory on April
1, 2002. The image represents a 1.5 minute exposure, taken with
a 50mm camera lens at f/2. |
|
|
John
E Cordiale,
Glens Falls, New York
April 1 |
#1,
#2 |
John Cordiale: "I took my daughter
out to see the comet last night.She said to me, " Is it the thing
with the long thing behind it?" I said "Yes." She said very enthusiastically,
" Cool !". I took these quick pics on with a SONY DSC F707 5 Megapixel
camera with 2.0 Carl Zeiss lens." |
|
|
Jerry
Zhu,
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
April 1 |
#1 |
Jerry Zhu: "A photo of Ikeya-Zhang
and M31 I took tonight, from Pittsburgh, PA. M31 can be seen as
a faint, small patch to the center right. Light pollution was
severe and there was some haze. Taken with Nikon Coolpix 995 digital
camera, 60 second exposure on a tripod, F2.6, set to ISO 800 with
noise reduction." |
|
|
Alex
Ivie,
Northwest Arkansas
April 1 |
#1 |
Alex Ivie took this nice digital
photo from his front yard, in Arkansas, on April 1st. |
|
|
Juha
Kinnunen,
Konginkangas, Finland
March 31 |
#1 |
This image of the comet was sent
by Jula Kinnunen of Finland. Taken with a Nikkor camera with 28mm
lens at f/1.4 and Fuji Provia 400 film. |
|
|
Calvin
Hall,
Glens Falls, New York
March 29, 30,
31 |
#1,
#2, #3 |
A beautiful series of images by
renowned astrophotographer Calvin Hall. Taken over three nights,
they reveal Comet Ikeya-Zhang complimented by the Aurora Borealis.
The three images also show the progression of the comet relative
to the stars. |
|
|
Mark
Hoffmeyer,
Anchorage, Alaska
March 31 |
#1,
#2, #3 |
Mark Hoffmeyer: "Easter Sunday
closed out beautifully - About 10:30 pm local time, the static
green aurora band exploded with brightness and movement. Comet
Ikeya-Zhang enhances the beauty of the moonless sky. I caught
these with a Minolta X700, 50mm F1.7 lens on Fuji 400 film." |
|
|
Jimmy
Westlake,
Yampa, Colorado
March 30,
31 |
#1,
#2, #3,
#4, #5,
#6 |
Jimmy Westlake: "Comet I-Z
strongly resembles Comet Halley to me when it was at its best
in the morning sky of early March 1986. Both sported tails extended
about 10-degrees to the unaided eye and appeared about 3rd magnitude...What
a great spring comet surprise!" |
|
|
John
Kemp,
Canterbury, UK
March 30 |
#1 |
John Kemp of Canterbury sent us
this image of Ikeya-Zhang, taken with a 10-inch reflector at f/4.3,
and 1600 ISO slide film. The image was a 60-second exposure. |
|
|
Tone
Spenko,
Slovenia
March 27-30 |
#1 |
A beautiful composite from Slovenia,
showing Comet Ikeya-Zhang's evolution over three nights. The image
from March 30th shows the comet near the bright star Beta Andromedae
(Mirach), and small galaxy NGC 404. |
|
|
Tom
Teters,
Northern Colorado
March 30 |
#1 |
Tom Teters: "Next to Mirach,
the comet's tail seems to have diminished somewhat. This is a
10 sec. ST-6 exposure at 7:34pm MDT through a Stellarvue 80mm.
I only had time to take about 10 exposures before the comet and
Mirach disappeared behind a cloud bank." |
|
|
John
Kemp,
Canterbury, UK
March 30 |
#1 |
John Kemp of Canterbury sends this
beautiful image of the comet, taken with a 10-inch reflector and
Starlight Xpress MX7 CCD camera. A 15-second exposure. |
back
to spaceweather.com |
