Comet Hale-Bopp during twilight
(wide-field photo)

March 18, 1997

Comet Hale-Bopp is now very bright (around magnitude -0.5), but is only visible from Hawaii shortly before sunrise and shortly after sunset. (Comet Hale-Bopp is more easily seen further to the north, and is harder to see further south.)

This photograph shows roughly what the eye sees - it shows a field of view approximately 45 degrees across. The island is named Manana; it is commonly referred to as Rabbit island. Compare this image with an image of Comet Hyakutake taken from a nearby location.

Photograph by UH astronomer Richard J. Wainscoat

Technical information: Camera: Mamiya 645 Pro Lens: 80mm f/1.9 (@f/2.8) Film: Fuji Provia 400 Exposure: 15 seconds © 1997 Richard Wainscoat, All Rights Reserved. You may make a copy of this photo for personal or classroom use. Please contact Richard Wainscoat (rjw@ifa.hawaii.edu) if you want to use this photo for other purposes.
If you want to observe Hale-Bopp yourself (you should, it is beautiful), maps and ephemerides are available on this site.
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Creation: Wed Mar 19 19:40 1997 -- Hits: