Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) is moving away from us and has dimmed considerably in the past month. Here is the last good image I got of the comet as it passed through the constellation Taurus and near the bright star Aldebaran (the “eye of the bull“). The star cluster to the right of the comet is the Hyades.
Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) continues to be a interesting object in the night sky for photography, telescopes, and binoculars. Unfortunately, it never got bright enough to be an easy object for the unaided eye. One could sometimes see it when viewing it from very dark locations without the Moon present–but usually only with averted vision. At its brightest it was reported to have reached magnitude +5. The comet should fade rather rapidly in February and may be as faint as magnitude +8 by the end of the month.
The comet made its closest approach to the sun on 12 January 2023 (1.11 AU; 166 million km) and its closest approach to Earth on 01 February 2023 (0.28 AU; 42 million km). See the included Solar System map that shows the location of the comet relative to Earth or visit TheSkyLive.com for an interactive version.
Here are a few of the better images I have been able to capture of the comet over the past few weeks. These have used a variety of lenses but always the same camera, tripod, and star tracker.
These photos were taken on 22 January 2023 using a manual focus Nikon NIKKOR 80-200mm f/4 AI-S zoom lens. This lens has the advantage of having a hard stop at ∞ making it very easy to focus. Image stacking was done using Deep Sky Stacker.
Both of these images of the comet show the tail (pointing up) and the antitail (pointing down). From Wikipedia:
An antitail is an apparent spike projecting from a comet’s coma which seems to go towards the Sun, and thus geometrically opposite to the other tails: the ion tail and the dust tail. However, this phenomenon is an optical illusion that is seen from the Earth…
And here is a time-lapse movie of the motion of the comet during the period 0359 through 0435 MST.
Time-lapse video of Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) from 0358–0454 MST 22 January 2023.
A few days later I was able to capture both the dust tail and the ion tail. Stacking was done using Deep Sky Stacker. This was shot with the Nikon NIKKOR ED 180mm f/2.8 AI-S manual focus lens.
On 10 February the comet appeared near both the planet Mars and the Pleiades star cluster. Also visible are the dark dust lanes of the Taurus Molecular Cloud. Photos shot with Nikon 85mm f/1.8 AF-S G. Stacking was done using Starry Sky Stacker.
Time-lapse video of Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) and Mars from 1926–2029 MST 10 February 2023.
Lastly, a time-lapse video of the motion of the comet also shows a plethora of satellites moving across the sky.
Later this week the comet will pass close to the Hyades star cluster. If skies are clear I’ll be back out shooting more photos of the comet.
Note: Both of the videos incorrectly label the comet ZTH rather than ZTF.
There was a full Moon this past weekend (05 February 2023) and we decided it would be fun to spend a few days at Grand Canyon and do some photography and hiking.
We arrived in the early afternoon at the East Entrance to avoid the possible long lines at the more popular South Entrance. Our first stop was at Desert View because I wanted to take some updated photos of the interior of the Desert View Watchtower. First attempts were with a 24mm wide angle but it was not wide enough. So, back to the car to get the 17–35mm ultra-wide lens.
For the Moonrise we went to the Visitors Center parking area and walked along the Rim Trail to capture the nearly-full Moon rising over the North Rim. Unfortunately, distant high clouds prevented seeing the Moon until it was well above the horizon. No matter, it was still very nice. While waiting for the Moon, I shot photos of hikers ascending the South Kaibab Trail near the Ooh-Aah Viewpoint with the late afternoon sun illuminating the rock faces.
The following day also included a photoshoot of the rising Moon but we had plenty of time before that and found ourselves hiking down Bright Angel Trail. The trail was covered in packed snow and foot traction was helpful. We opted to only hike down as far as 1½ Mile Rest House before returning. I didn’t time the descent but the return ascent was 57 minutes. Not too bad for 1.5 miles and 1120′ vertical gain.
The Moonrise photography went well with the Moon rising in the notch between Cape Royal on the North Rim and Wotans Throne in the Canyon.
The following morning we arose early to see the sunrise from Hopi Point. With the passage of a weak cold front during the night I was hoping for some dramatic clouds. Nope. Nothing. Clear skies but there was the setting Moon in the west. As a consolation I got early morning light on the Tower of Set and Horus Temple.
Here are some recent photographs of winter scenes in and near Flagstaff.
A few nights of sub-zero temperatures provided enough ice for these locals to skate and play hockey on some water detention ponds.
New Years Eve day brought widespread fog and low clouds to the area.
There was even enough snow for a bit of cross country skiing at Fort Tuthill County Park.
More snow is expected later this week…more photos likely.
It has been a few years since we have done a winter hike up the West Fork of Oak Creek. This is mainly because of overcrowding in the canyon and a full parking lot. But earlier this week we passed by the entrance and noted that the parking lot was nearly empty. We already had plans for that day but decided to hike the following day.
We have done this hike in the winter enough times to know that having solid foot traction gear is necessary as well as a set of hiking poles. With those aids, we had very little trouble hiking to the end of the established trail (~3.2 miles). As noted at the trailhead, there are 13 stream crossings and each one had ice-covered rocks and/or logs to step on. The trail was a combination of packed snow and ice.
We saw only a few people at the start of the hike and none after the first half-mile or so. On the way back, we encountered a few hiking parties intent on reaching the end of the trail and they were close enough that I have little doubt that they made it. As we got closer to the trailhead we ran into several parties that were ill-equipped to be doing this winter hike.
This winter hike is best right after a snowstorm but that can mean having to break trail through the snow. We’ve done that and it was a workout. But the payoff in snow-covered cliffs and creek are worth the effort.
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Here are some older entries about hiking West Fork in the winter: