18K
Observers: David Fideler, Ariel Godwin, Joscelyn Godwin
Location: Earlville, New York
Date: March 25, 1997 01:30 UT
Photographic details: FILM: Kodak Ektachrome P1600; CAMERA: Pentax K1000 on stationary tripod; LENS: 50mm, F/2.8; EXPOSURE: About 15 seconds. Photos processed for brightnes, contrast, and sharpness in Photoshop.
Notes: The light from the nearly full Moon washed out much of the tail and illuminated the wispy, high altitude clouds. Despite the moonlight, seven degrees of the dust tail was visible through binoculars and we could see the envelopes surrounding the pseudonucleus through an 80mm refractor. The moonlight accounts for the brightness of the sky and is being reflected off clouds in the photograph. Despite the interference, Hale-Bopp held its own.
David Fideler / phanes@cris.com
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