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APO Image of Comet Hale-Bopp

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Observers: Karen Gloria, Eddie Bergeron, Kurt Anderson
Location: Apache Point Observatory, New Mexico
Date: October 16-17, 1995

APO Images of Comet Hale-Bopp

These images of Comet Hale-Bopp were obtained at New Mexico's Apache Point Observatory, using the 3.5 meter telescope of the Astrophysical Research Consortium, on the evenings of 16 and 17 October, 1995.

The infrared J-Band image (3rd image), shows the comet at wavelengths somewhat longer than can be seen by human eye. Comet and stars appear reddish in this picture. The other is a composite picture, made by combining green and red wavelength images. Here the comet appears somewhat bluer than most of the background stars. In both instances the comet appears as a fuzzy patch of gas superimposed on the stellar background of the Milky Way. The elongated structure is due to a jet of gases ejected from the comets nucleus; other observations of this structure suggest that the comet is spinning about its axis roughly once every five days or so.

These images of Comet Hale-Bopp were acquired and processed by Karen Gloria, Eddie Bergeron, and Kurt Anderson of New Mexico's Apache Point Observatory and New Mexico State University. Computing and hardware support was also provided by the National Solar Observatory at nearby Sacramento Peak.
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