APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)

APOD Robot · Post by **APOD Robot** » Thu Jul 23, 2015 4:07 am

Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus

Explanation: It is the object to the left of the big tree that's generating much recent excitement. If you look closely, there you can see Comet PanSTARRS, complete with two tails. During July, this comet has increased markedly in brightness and has just passed its closest approach to Earth. The statuesque tree in the center is a Norfolk Island Pine, and to either side of this tree are New Zealand Pohutukaw trees. Over the trees, far in the distance, are bright Venus and an even brighter crescent Moon. If you look even more closely, you can find Jupiter hidden in the branches of the pine. The featured image was taken a few days ago in Fergusson Park, New Zealand, looking over Tauranga Harbour Inlet. In the coming days and weeks, Comet C/2014 Q1 (PANSTARRS) will slowly move away from the Sun and the Earth, drift deep into southern skies, and fade.

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jamesw · Post by **jamesw** » Thu Jul 23, 2015 5:01 am

great photo today - but it's pohutukawa, not pohutokaw - NZ's iconic seashore tree!

chuckster · Post by **chuckster** » Thu Jul 23, 2015 5:14 am

Why does the Southern Hemisphere get all the best comet action ? ?

gadieid · Post by **gadieid** » Thu Jul 23, 2015 6:55 am

What a wonderful shot and Venus is so close to he moon. Almost an occultation.

Pianosorplanets · Post by **Pianosorplanets** » Thu Jul 23, 2015 7:15 am

Being new, I suppose that it's long been discussed but, still, I can't help but marvel at the double tail. Each comet, like huge snowflakes, presents such a desperate shape to their tails. Do the tails flow off the comet mostly based on the physical shape of the nucleus? If so, I'd love to see the shape of PanSTARRS' nucleus as much as I liked seeing the lobed shape of comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko. Looking forward to learning if it produces a tail with a "split personality" as well...

Boomer12k · Post by **Boomer12k** » Thu Jul 23, 2015 9:06 am

Awesome!!

:---[===] *

apody · Post by **apody** » Thu Jul 23, 2015 11:18 am

Great picture !!!!

What about this rounded shape just above the moon ? A planet ? A kind of a light reflection on the camera ?

If anyone has a clue

geckzilla · Post by **geckzilla** » Thu Jul 23, 2015 11:19 am

apody wrote:Great picture !!!!

What about this rounded shape just above the moon ? A planet ? A kind of a light reflection on the camera ?

If anyone has a clue

That's a reflection. It's kind of a lens flare from the moon...

Animal of Stone · Post by **Animal of Stone** » Thu Jul 23, 2015 12:15 pm

It is an awesome shot. In southern Australia the winter nights have been incredibly clear and the dusk skies breathtaking. Would love to know what the bright orb is that sits on the mountain range just below the Norfolk Island Pine.

Ron-Astro Pharmacist · Post by **Ron-Astro Pharmacist** » Thu Jul 23, 2015 5:02 pm

Thanks for the annotation Geck. I may kid you from time to time but your work on flickr and your website is truly amazing. I especially like the planetary nebulas but that's just my preference. I wonder if NGC 7027 ever got a popular name. Plenty were submitted.

Your ocular digitation is second to none.

an7hony361 · Post by **an7hony361** » Thu Jul 23, 2015 5:33 pm

Did anyone notice the "green flash" above the distant mountain? I wonder if this was a true "setting sun green flash" or something else.

geckzilla · Post by **geckzilla** » Thu Jul 23, 2015 7:07 pm

Ron-Astro Pharmacist wrote:I wonder if NGC 7027 ever got a popular name. Plenty were submitted.

I'm pretty well settled on Pillow Nebula for that one. Dunno about anyone else!

an7hony361 wrote:Did anyone notice the "green flash" above the distant mountain? I wonder if this was a true "setting sun green flash" or something else.

Amit answered this over at Facebook. He says it's just some kind of light on the island, maybe even a light house. The sun was too far gone for a green flash.

Nitpicker · Post by **Nitpicker** » Fri Jul 24, 2015 12:24 am

an7hony361 wrote:Did anyone notice the "green flash" above the distant mountain? I wonder if this was a true "setting sun green flash" or something else.

I suspect that the "green flash" is actually above a cloud, not a mountain, and that it might be from a distant aircraft. Edit: oops, didn't notice geck's answer above mine in time.

Very beautiful APOD. Also, the home of the local Tauranga Astronomical Society seems to be located only a few yards from where this photo was taken. I'm hoping to be in Tauranga for Summer Solstice/Xmas/New Year.

Nitpicker · Post by **Nitpicker** » Fri Jul 24, 2015 12:44 am

Nitpicker wrote:
an7hony361 wrote:Did anyone notice the "green flash" above the distant mountain? I wonder if this was a true "setting sun green flash" or something else.
I suspect that the "green flash" is actually above a cloud, not a mountain, and that it might be from a distant aircraft. Edit: oops, didn't notice geck's answer above mine in time.

Very beautiful APOD. Also, the home of the local Tauranga Astronomical Society seems to be located only a few yards from where this photo was taken. I'm hoping to be in Tauranga for Summer Solstice/Xmas/New Year.

To correct myself and others, I think the distant mountain is a distant mountain after all: the Kaimai Range separating the Bay of Plenty and Waikato regions. I'm pretty confident the "green flash" is not a light on Motuhoa Island, but I don't really know what it is.

otehake · Post by **otehake** » Fri Jul 24, 2015 6:02 am

Great photo.

From calculating the angles on Google Earth, the photo is taken from Fergusson Park (Tauranga, New Zealand), looking across Motuhoa Island and with the Kaimai mountain range in the background. The "green flash" on the horizon to the left of the Norfolk Pine will be the lights on the large telecommunication tower on Mt Te Aroha (altitude 953m).

geckzilla · Post by **geckzilla** » Mon Jul 27, 2015 8:56 pm

So, I've tried to get my annotations updated for this APOD so that the name of the tree is spelled correctly, but haven't been able to get it done. For the record, the name of the tree is spelled Pohutukawa and here is a nice Wikipedia article on it.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metrosideros_excelsa

Apologies to all the Kiwis out there who noticed.

geckzilla · Post by **geckzilla** » Wed Jul 29, 2015 7:05 pm

geckzilla wrote:So, I've tried to get my annotations updated for this APOD so that the name of the tree is spelled correctly, but haven't been able to get it done. For the record, the name of the tree is spelled Pohutukawa and here is a nice Wikipedia article on it.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metrosideros_excelsa

Apologies to all the Kiwis out there who noticed.

It is fixed now, thanks to Jerry!

earyoung · Post by **earyoung** » Wed Mar 28, 2018 12:05 pm

What is the white patch just above the mountains and below dark cloud on the lower left of Norfolk pine tree?

geckzilla · Post by **geckzilla** » Wed Mar 28, 2018 6:46 pm

earyoung wrote: ↑Wed Mar 28, 2018 12:05 pm What is the white patch just above the mountains and below dark cloud on the lower left of Norfolk pine tree?

Some kind of terrestrial light source from a structure of some sort on the other side of the mountain. The light is shining up and reflecting off the clouds. See earlier in the thread.

Starship Asterisk*

APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)

APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)

Re: APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)

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Re: APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)

Re: APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)

Re: APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)

Re: APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)

Re: APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)

Re: APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)

Re: APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)

Re: APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)

Re: APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)

Re: APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)

Re: APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)

Re: APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)

Re: APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)

Re: APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)

Re: APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)

Re: APOD: Comet PanSTARRS, Moon, and Venus (2015 Jul 23)