A few minutes after sunset on Tuesday, 14 January 2025, I went outside to see if I could spot Comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS). It survived a close pass by the Sun and is still located near the Sun. It will soon be a southern hemisphere comet, so this could be the only opportunity I would have to see it.

1740 MST: Sunset.

1754 MST: Spotted Comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS), 7x50 binoculars. A short bright tail was visible with a bright head. I began taking handheld photos.

1803 MST: D850 DSLR (f/5.6, 1/125sec, ISO 400, FL 300)

Click or tap on image for larger version

1803 MST: Magnified image of the Comet from the above photo


1807 MST: D850 DSLR (f/5.6, 1/60sec, ISO 400, FL 300)


1811 MST: iPhone 15 Pro Max (5X lens with digital zoom)


1812 MST: D850 DSLR (f/5.6, 1/20sec, ISO 250, FL 300)

1814 MST: I watched the comet set behind the mountains using the 7x50 binoculars. That was fun! It was bright enough to see it through the haze all the way to setting. Unfortunately, I never saw the comet naked eye.

I then went to the observatory.

Open: Tuesday, 14 January 2025, 1837 MST Temperature: 52°F

Session: 2063 Conditions: Clear

Equipment:
12" f/8 LX600 w/StarLock
2" 24mm UWA eyepiece
2" 9mm 100° eyepiece

Camera:
None

1843 MST: LX600 ON, StarLock OFF, High Precision OFF.

Viewed Venus, 102X and 271X.

Viewed Saturn, 102X and 271X.

Viewed Neptune, 102X and 271X.

Viewed Uranus, 102X and 271X.

Viewed Jupiter and the four Galilean Moons, 102X and 271X.

Viewed Mars, 102X and 271X.

Viewed M42 (Great Nebula in Orion), 102X. Some nebulosity was visible in the bright moonlit sky. The Trapezium stars were a nice view.

1911 MST: LX600 OFF.

Close: Tuesday, 14 January 2025, 1918 MST Temperature: 47°F

Session Length: 0h 41m Conditions: Clear

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