OK it will be clear enouch for both of you on the night of 23rd Jan but
you may have to snap it through a sucker hole. Just make sure you note
down the exact local time that you snap the picture. You should both use
a 3 minute exposure at about ISO1600 for your scope apertures to brinbg
up the star field. Perhaps our resident Professional Photographer with
the ~ 7" refractor (1000mm f5.6) would like to add to this advice?

Cheers

Donal wrote:

"Nav" wrote in message
...

OK, on 1/1/05 at 8.55.11 pm local New York time, comet MACHOLTZ C/2004
Q2 will be will be 2 degrees 2' 4" from HIP17240 (which happens to be a
supergiant star).



I'm unlikely to be in a position where I could see it until mid-January, due
to light pollution.

Perhaps, you could check our weather to find a suitable time when we could
both take a photo after 15th Jan.

Of course, to make the whole thing really interesting, you should use the
two photos to work out the distance to Machholz from the parallex!!!




Regards


Donal
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