Campaign Goals: May 26 - June 19, 2005

As of May 26, only 38 days until impact!

Tempel 1 is now an early evening object and is rapidly moving south. The best time to image the comet from the northern hemisphere is during the first 1-3 hours after astronomical twilight while observers in the southern hemisphere have about 5 hours after dark.

For the first few days of this campaign, we are calling for as many observations of Tempel 1 to support analysis of a jet feature. Dr. Tony Farnham, University of Maryland, is asking for as many STSP images (R, I, and clear) of the comet as possible from May 26-30 to help him determine if the jet is returning to the same orientation recorded during the 1994 perihelion passage. He is requesting images over the next few days because he does not have telescope time until June 3 and STSP images should help him move forward with his analysis. As usual, we will also use any R and I images for dust production analysis.

The comet continues to brighten while moving south. By the end of June, Tempel 1 will be very hard or even impossible to image from more northern latitudes, so we encourage everyone to image Tempel 1 when the sky is photometric during the next month! We will also accept images taken while the moon is up, as long as it is about 30 degrees or more from the comet. If you image with the moon up, please note this in your observing log!

During new moon on June 6, we expect the total visual magnitude to be about 9.5 and the R magnitude to be about 10.5. At UTC 05:00, about 17 hours before new moon, Tempel 1 will be near RA 13:00:02.2 and Dec +01 19 31.9. From latitudes near +32 degrees, the comet has an elevation of 52 degress at 10pm Pacific daylight time.

We are requesting the following types of observations or measurements during this period:

• aperture photometry of the dust coma from broadband RI images; reduced RI images without photometry will be accepted and analyzed
• daily imaging in VRI or unfiltered to monitor for jets and outbursts

Registration and Data Submission

(Spring 2006)
Registration and data submission have been closed.

Questions? How to Contact Us!

Please send questions about this campaign to Stef McLaughlin, University of Maryland.

During the campaign weekend, Stef will monitor the observers' message board. Also, if you have an urgent question, you may leave a message at 301.405.3605 (USA).

STSP Coordinator: Stef McLaughlin
Webmaster: Elizabeth Warner
Last Updated: Wednesday August 29, 2007