Check out Beautiful Universe 2012 from Sky & Telescope and see the picture of the recent comet and the asterism Collinder 399, the “Coathanger Asterism”, a wonderful shot of the comet and the “Coathanger Asterism” in the same field of view.
Stellar Skies,
Doug Horacek
Resident Astronomer
25 November 2011, 23:00-1:00 U.T.
Watched Jupiter’s Moon Europa approach the planet for a transit and later casting a shadow on the face of the planet.
Earlier saw Venus in its gibbous phase and Venus rises in the sky as our evening star.
Last, I showed the Pleiades under low power with my 3.5 inch Orion Refractor and low power wide angle eyepiece to a neighbor, capture most of the bright stars in the cluster.
Although there were a few clouds and there was much light pollution to deal with, it was a moonless night with fairly stable viewing conditions and moderate temperatures.
Observations were made from my condo on Water’s Edge Lane in Madison Town Center.
Doug Horacek
Resident Astronomer
Von Braun Astronomical Society