Fine – it’s the weekend!
I spent about 45-60 minutes out searching for Comet A3 with no success. The clouds were gone (which is good) and I from my spot four houses down the hill I had a good, clear view of the western sky.
The Canon (i.e., the “good camera”) should have seen it. You can easily see Venus (just to the right of the power wire in the lower left) and Comet A3 should have been at about the same height above the horizon, just above that small batch of trees silhouetted in the middle. That’s where the Bright Comet app said it should be, and that’s where the spotter charts from Sky & Telescope said it should be.
Wide angle image from my iPhone. I was standing under a street light, which is why the street and cars and houses are so brightly lit. My kindom for a BB gun or slingshot.
Normal image from my iPhone. Using a tripod so there shouldn’t be any wiggles or fuzziness in the long exposure. It’s crisp and clean, but there’s no comet there to be seen, which actually surprised me.
3x telephoto image from my iPhone. It was dark enough by this point to start seeing other stars, but still no sign of the comet or its tail. And in between sets of pictures every few minutes I was also looking with binoculars and seeing nothing.
It was a bit frustrating.
I know folks were seeing the comet elsewhere. There were hundreds and hundreds of pictures on social media, including many from the LA and Antelope Valley areas.
Tomorrow it should be a touch higher and in darker skies being further away from the Sun. I may also try to go find a spot outside of the area and away from all of the lights of the city.
We’ll see.
“Never give up, never surrender,” and all of that folderol.
We Love The Stars Too Fondly 