Well, we just spent an hour looking for Comet McNaught. It was a cloudless sky but for one bank of dark clouds. We used this diagram from Steve Quirk. It is also useful in identifying the one set of clouds in the Melbourne sky on the 14th January. They were right there at the 14 point and didn’t move. So much for the brightest comet since 1965.
29 thoughts on “Comet McNaught indeed”
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Core Economics 
Clear skies in Ceduna, South Australia gave us a fantastic view of the comet, shortly after the sun set on January 15th. Very exciting.
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High Altitude Cloud and smoke from Dubbo bushfires gave us beautiful sunset from Mt Canobolas near Orange NSW, but comet head only barely visible through binoculars – tail not visible (no we weren’t looking at venus :-).
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i will be checking it out tonight,im in raymond terrace about 20 minutes out of newcastle NSW with meduim size binoculars…let you know how the view is and maybe get some pics with my telescopic lens ?
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Oh my! Despite clouds and haze from Wollongong I just saw the most spectacular comet – tail blazing – about 15 mins after sunset (naked eye). I think I may have seen it just post-sunset too with a split tail but my sister thinks this was a plane (it didn’t move though & was in right location) – so if anyone can confirm?
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We took our children to see the comet. We got some video footage of the comet. The children were trying to spot the comet and when they did see it they thought it was great that they got to see it.
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Got ontop of my roof last night at sunset in Jervis bay, but unfortunatly way to much smoke on the horizon to see anything. Hopefully It will be a bit better tonight.
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going to check it out again tonight i got some good shots and video of it but ill be going out bush tonight to get a better view
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20k south of Adelaide. Thru a broken cloud bank right where it shouldn’t be, I saw it through the binocs in a gap. It was surprisingly good.
A decent head, clear consistant tail, fanning out. Not easy to see before dark with naked eyes, or even totally naked (I tried), unlike Venus, who was totally naked and glowing.;-)
150 zoom (on my eyes), and the head is like a litle chunk of the moon in size, not just a point like a star. .
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Australia, Victoria, Horsham. I spent an hour or more go back and forth outside my house to look for it. Though it was very difficult because of all the clouds in the way. Finally i spotted it just in between a gap of clouds. So i rushed back up to my house to tell mum and dad then we came back out and it was gone behind a cloud then it popped out underneath it and was only visible for less than 5 mins. It was very difficult to spot it with your naked eye at the end. So hopefully tomorrow night will be better.
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So it is now the 18th and here in Melbourne we are still stuffed. More clouds than ever. Only one more night before it is off the chart.
I am glad so many others got to see it. I am also somewhat amused that my post here was No.4 on google searches in Australia for this topic. Welcome to all you new readers!
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seen it tonight,went 20km out of town.use binoculars and viewed for a whole 25 minutes.
Great view no clouds and it stuck out like a sore thumb.
Nice coma on it and i hope to view it tommorrow night.
Anyone else have much luck view it ???
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The next night, Wed 17th, I could easily see it naked eyed; was visible nearly all the time – 20 mins or more.
Half bright as Venus and just below, tail twice long as a full moon. The head was more a glowy point, in focus.
I’m sorry Melbourners!
BTW, what has this to do with CoRE economics? Shouldn’t it be CoMET CoRE economics? ?
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lol good point there,well i hope all you people in melbourne get to see it tonight as it is the last day for it.
ive been lucky enought to see at 3 times so i can tell you its a great site.
Has anyone got any pics ???????
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Clear skies in central west nsw right now. Can see it in the Southern (not western) sky as plain as day. Could easily mistake it for a jet trail until you take a closer look.
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Great view to the sth/sth/west from Ipswich Qld, got some great photos too. If your wanting to get photos try a 2sec shutter speed.
If you want any pics post your email and I’ll send some.
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Would love some photos if possible. Email is [email protected]
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any pics would be great. i am heading out tonight to have a look
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hey guys, i live in bacchus marsh and i can see it right now but in other areas of the town my friends can’t see it
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Travelling between Crookwell and Binda in the NSW southern tablelands on Sat night, 20 Jan at 10.30 pm. Saw this incredible comet in all it’s glory for over an hour. A massive tail stretching from the south west to almost due west! The most fabulous terestrial event in my 55 years. “Stunning” is to inadequate a word to decribe what we saw.
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very large fanning tail. looked spectacular when the clouds moved and without surrounding torchlights and headlights…
also would love some pics if possible. My email is [email protected]
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I walked out the back door, lent on the fence in the gap amongst the trees, there was the spectacular comet with the curved tail filling the whole sky!
A picture of utter beauty!!!
Clarendon near Adelaide
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I just spent 30 minutes watching it over Bass Strait in Warrnambool Vic (Great Ocean Road), Fantastic Stuff!
We have had cloud cover and rain here for most of the week and finally it was perfectly clear today.
Great Stuff! 20 times better than Haley’s Comet and the tail was about 30 times longer!
Chops
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absolutely amazing!
the most spectacular astronomical sight I have ever seen.
bright core visible through 10 x 50 mm binos, huge tail covering approx. 25 deg. by 40 deg.
dark sky site on coast near Inverloch Vic.
Viewed from approx. 10pm to 11.30pm
Hope the viewing is just as good tomorrow night
clear skies!
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Awsome sight,feel very privileged to have viewed this natural wonder.
Rutherglen Vic.
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i have just watched the comet mc naught from frankston victoria from 9.30 pm until 9.50 pm when clouds arrived….well defined and much clearer than halley’s comet from some years back!
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Viewed from the car park at Goolwa Beach SA it was spectacular! Long bright fanning tail trailing sparkling core. How wonderous the heavens are, how incredible creation is. Hoping the skies are as clear tomorrow night for yet another viewing!
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We’ve been lucky enough to see it every night, even through the smoke haze from the Alpine fires (or course, there’s a lot less vegetation on the western ridgeline since Dec 14th!). Have viewed it numerous times with the naked eye and a pair of 75×10 binoculars. Am going to get out the big guns tonight and have a look at it through the 8″ equatorial-mount reflector…see what I can see! Just beautiful though – hard to believe we’ll never see it again, ‘eh? I find it hard to grasp the concept of the whole thing at the moment – I hope every man and his dog goes outside and appreciates this!
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We have only just decided to try and find the comet but over the last nights the cloud cover has been too great, ot at least that is what we think. Where should we be looking from Mordialloc and about what time being we are so late getting involved?
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