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TIPS FOR GREAT COMET PHOTOS THE MYSTERIOUS SCIENCE OF COMETS SEE THE GEMINID METEORS p. 18 p. 70 p. 50 THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO ASTRONOMY A Pinwheel Galaxy in Depth p. 34 COMET PHOTO CONTEST SEE PAGE 42 DECEMBER 2013 Comet Comet Takes ISON Center Stage Predictions & Viewing Guide p. 26 Venus and Winterize Your Observing Wardrobe p. 66 Jupiter Shine Bright p. 48 Meet Our Galactic Neighbors p. 56 Meade’s Astro-Imaging System p. 60 Visit SkyandTelescope.com Download Our Free SkyWeek App “I can’t say when I’ve ever enjoyed owning anything more than my Tele Vue products.” — R.C, TX Tele Vue-76 Why Are Tele Vue Products So Good? Because We Aim to Please! For over 30-years we’ve created eyepieces and telescopes focusing on a singular target; deliver a cus- tomer experience “...even better than you imagined.” Eyepieces with wider, sharper fields of view so you see more at any power, Rich-field refractors with APO performance so you can enjoy Andromeda as well as Jupiter in all their splendor. Tele Vue products complement each other to pro- vide an observing experience as exquisite in performance as it is enjoyable and effortless. And how do we score with our valued customers? Judging by superlatives like: “in- credible, truly amazing, awesome, fantastic, beautiful, work of art, exceeded expectations by a mile, best quality available, WOW, outstanding, uncom- NP101 f/5.4 APO refractor with 110° Ethos-SX eye- piece shown on Gibraltar Mount with Sky Tour locat- ing, and pneumatic adjustable Air-Chair observing stool. promised, perfect, gorgeous” etc., BULLSEYE! See these superlatives in their original warranty card context at TeleVue.com/comments. Eyepiece, telescope, or complete system, let us show you how good we are. Tele Vue ® Visionary 32 Elkay Drive, Chester, New York 10918 845.469.4551 www.TeleVue.com December 2013 VOL. 126, NO. 6 On the cover: Comet ISON is keeping observ- ers in suspense over what kind of sight it has in store for them. OBSERVING DECEMBER 43 In This Section 44 December’s Sky at a Glance 45 Binocular Highlight By Gary Seronik COMET HYAKUTAKE: GERALD RHEMANN 46 Planetary Almanac There’s more to find online @ SkyandTelescope.com 47 Northern Hemisphere’s Sky By Fred Schaaf FEATURES 18 Mysterious Travelers Humans have been seeing comets 48 Sun, Moon & Planets By Fred Schaaf TIPS FOR BEGINNERS New to astronomy? Here’s everything you need to jump into the fun. SkyandTelescope.com/letsgo for millennia, but we still have a lot more questions than answers. By David Jewitt 50 Celestial Calendar By Alan MacRobert 26 The Comet ISON Story 54 Exploring the Moon By Charles Wood With the most dramatic portion of W COVER STORY Comet ISON’s apparition almost 56 Deep-Sky Wonders upon us, questions remain about By Sue French what we’ll see. By John E. Bortle 30 Dazzle or Dud? S&T TEST REPORT 60 S&T Test Report When, where, and how to watch whatever Comet ISON becomes. By Alan MacRobert By Dennis di Cicco 34 Exploring the SKY WEEK Triangulum Galax y ALSO IN THIS ISSUE 6 Spectrum If you want to see a galaxy with By Robert Naeye beautiful spiral arms and a multi- NASA / ESA / AURA / CALTECH tude of deep-sky treasures, it’s hard 8 Letters SKYWEEK Watch our weekly PBS segment to fi nd out what’s currently up in the sky. skyweek.com to beat M33. By Ted Forte 9 75, 50 & 25 Years Ago 66 Dress for Stargazing Success By Roger W. Sinnott It’s easy to stay toasty warm when 10 News Notes it’s cold outside. By Tony Flanders 70 Capturing Comets 40 New Product Showcase ASTROPHOTO GALLERY Enjoy readers’ best images and upload your own. SkyandTelescope.com/gallery Come home with a trophy of 64 Telescope Workshop Comet ISON using these helpful By Gary Seronik techniques. By Chris Cook 77 Gallery Naked-Eye Nova 76 SKY AT A GLANCE Our popular column highlights celestial delights for the next week. Also available as an app! SkyandTelescope.com/ataglance Shines in Delphinus 86 Focal Point By Chad Moore Professionals and amateurs are following Nova Delphini 2013. By Robert Naeye SKY & TELESCOPE (ISSN 0037-6604) is published monthly by Sky & Telescope Media, LLC, 90 Sherman St., Cambridge, MA 02140- 3264, USA. Phone: 800-253-0245 (customer service/subscriptions), 888-253-0230 (product orders), 617-864-7360 (all other calls). Fax: 617-864-6117. Website: SkyandTelescope.com. © 2013 Sky & Telescope Media, LLC. All rights reserved. Periodicals postage paid at Boston, Massachusetts, and at additional mailing offi ces. Canada Post Publications Mail sales agreement #40029823. Canadian return address: 2744 Edna St., Windsor, ON, Canada N8Y 1V2. Canadian GST Reg. #R128921855. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Sky & Telescope, PO Box 420235, Palm Coast, FL 32142-0235. Printed in the USA. Find us on Facebook &Twitter sky & telescope 4 December 2013 December 2013 Digital Extra BONUS WEB CONTENT • Latest ISON News We’ll post the newest updates about Comet ISON’s activity. • High-Power Comet Observing The tail is only part of a comet’s structure — learn what else you can see. • Digging Deep in M33 This classic article guides observers through the star-forming regions of the Triangulum Galaxy. Photo Gallery E X P LO R E OUR WEBSITE • Comet Guide Get the latest comet-related news and observing tips • Download Free eBooks Log in to read about everything from astrophotography to Saturn’s secrets. • MarketPlace See what’s new in our listings, and put up an ad for your own gear. Image by Andrea V. Anfossi PBS PROGRAM SKY WEEK OBSERVING HIGHLIGHTS DECEMBER PODCAST AUDIO SKY TOUR Sign up for Newsletters, AstroAlerts, and Observing Tools Shop @ Sky DOWNLOAD OUR PLANET GUIDE APPS THIS WEEK’S Sky at a Glance For Droid DIGITAL BACK ISSUES: August, September, October, and November Find us on Facebook & Tw it te r sky & telescope December 2013 [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ] |