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Abhijit Patil
Pinnacles National Park - Soledad, CA, USA
01/20/2023
01:30 am

Equipment Details:

Gear -
Nikon Z6ii Mirrorless camera, Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 lens
iOptron Telescopes Skyguider pro sky tracker

Post-processing Details:

Processed in Lightroom and Photoshop and then added the meteor frame after stacking.

Image Details:

Finally after an unending rain streak I was able to photograph Comet C/2022 E3 ZTF. It is very faint in the sky and not discernible to the naked eye but can be viewed using binoculars or telescopes with focal length greater than 200mm. It is currently a long way away from Earth at a staggering 73 Million KM (when I shot the image). It might grow stronger and brighter as it approaches Earth. It is currently approaching the Sun and will be returning back to the outer solar system following its orbit. It will reach closest to the Earth on Feb 2. It can be seen in the North Eastern sky currently after midnight to 1 AM until dawn. Gradually the time will advance and it can be seen late in the evening in the North. This comet wont be seen again for 50000 years. So while it is here, go and view it and enjoy this Celestial beauty.
Bonus meteor captured in one of the frames.

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