Comet 2011 L4 PANSTARRS

Comet 2011 L4 PANSTARRS proved to be a magnificent sight, particularly for southern hemisphere observers who were favoured during the brightest portion of the apparition. At its peak, the comet reached around magnitude 0 and was easily visible in twilight with the naked eye. Binoculars gave a magnificent view of the long dust tail.

My first view of the comet came on March 11, 2013, when the comet was very low in the western sky. At that time it was around magnitude 1 and sported a 3 degree tail in binoculars.

Comet 2011 L4 PANSTARRS. 14 March, 2013.
30 second exposure.
Canon 350D DSLR camera. 5" f/5 refractor at prime focus.

Comet 2011 L4 PANSTARRS. 14 March, 2013.
Combination of 15, 30 second images.
Canon 350D DSLR camera. 5" f/5 refractor at prime focus.

The comet remained visible until the moment it set despite considerable dust to the west. I decided to just let the camera run and make an animation from the resulting images. That animation can be found here

Comet 2011 L4 PANSTARRS. 18 March, 2013.
Combination of 16, 30 second images.
Canon 350D DSLR camera. 5" f/5 refractor at prime focus.

In an effort to minimise the background twilight and bring out more of the comet, I re-processed the above image to a dark background. Although it does not present the view through the telescope, it does allow more of the comet's tail to be seen.

Comet 2011 L4 PANSTARRS.

The comet quickly disappeared into the evening twilight and was not visible for several weeks until it re-appeared in the morning sky. As the comet drifted through the far northern skies, it faded steadily. However it still had one more display to reveal. By early june, the Earth was passing through the plane of the comet's orbit, and with the comet's dust tail pointing away from the Earth, it appeared as a spectacular anti-tail.

Comet 2011 L4 PANSTARRS. 02 June, 2013.
Combination of 5, 3 minutes images unfiltered.
SBIG STL-1001E CCD. 20" f/6.8 cassegrain at prime focus.

Comet 2011 L4 PANSTARRS. 05 June, 2013.
Combination of 5, 3 minutes images unfiltered.
SBIG STL-1001E CCD. 20" f/6.8 cassegrain at prime focus.

Comet 2011 L4 PANSTARRS. 05 June, 2013.
The above image procesed to show both stars and comet untrailed.

Comet 2011 L4 PANSTARRS. 05 June, 2013.
Combination of 20, 60 second images.
Canon 350D DSLR camera. 135mm f/2.8 Olympus lens.

Comet 2011 L4 PANSTARRS. 10 June, 2013.
Combination of 5, 3 minutes images unfiltered.
SBIG STL-1001E CCD. 20" f/6.8 cassegrain at prime focus.

Comet 2011 L4 PANSTARRS. 10 June, 2013.
Combination of 15, 2 minute images.
Canon 350D DSLR camera. 135mm f/2.8 Olympus lens.

Comet 2011 L4 PANSTARRS. 13 June, 2013.
Combination of 12, 3 minutes images unfiltered.
SBIG STL-1001E CCD. 5" f/5 refractor at prime focus.

Comet 2011 L4 PANSTARRS. 17 June, 2013.
Combination of 3, 3 minutes images taken through cloud.
SBIG STL-1001E CCD. 5" f/5 refractor at prime focus.

Comet 2011 L4 PANSTARRS. 23 October, 2013.
Combination of 5, 3 minute images, SBIG STL-1001E CCD.
20" f/6.8 Dall-Kirkham cassegrain at prime focus.