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Credit & Copyright: Damian Peach
Explanation:
Comet Lovejoy was captured last week passing well in front of spiral galaxy M63.
Discovered only three months ago and currently near its maximum
brightness,
Comet Lovejoy can be seen near the
Big Dipper from dark northerly locations
before dawn with the unaided eye.
An unexpected rival to
Comet ISON,
C/2013 R1 (Lovejoy),
pictured above, is currently sporting a large green coma and a beautifully textured
ion tail.
Comet
Lovejoy is now headed back to the outer
Solar System but should remain a
good site in
binoculars
for another few weeks.
Conversely, spiral galaxy
M63, lies far in the distance and is
expected to
remain stationary
on the sky and hold its relative
brightness for at least the next few million years.
Late News:
The continuing saga of Comet ISON
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: spiral galaxy - M 63 - comet
Publications with words: spiral galaxy - M 63 - comet
See also: