I was looking through my telescope last night and I witnessed what looked like a star but it was flashing green,blue & red.My neighbor said it may have been a comet.
2007-12-15 02:16:00 · 14 answers · asked by Cheryl C 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
The only two comets currently visible from the Northern Hemisphere with the unaided eye or a small telescope are 17P/Holmes and 8P/Tuttle. They don't flash colors, so what you saw probably wasn't a comet.
2007-12-15 06:31:18 · answer #1 · answered by jgoulden 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The flashing may have been caused by atmospherics quite common in winter on a clear night (ever heard of "twinkle, twinkle little star"?) If it was something moving like a plane or meteor it would have moved really quickly out of view with a telescope. There is a comet near the constellation Perseus (or there was a few days ago) but it was quite fuzzy and bigger than a star.
2007-12-15 10:34:09 · answer #2 · answered by dinner nanny 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
You have seen an ordinary star.Due to atmospheric problems,stars twinkles and show many colors. Only comet now visible in sky is Comet Holmes in Constellation of Perseus and it is just a fuzzy object with out any colour
2007-12-15 17:33:35 · answer #3 · answered by Chandramohan P.R 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Any observation needs to include the date, time, and your location, and which direction you were looking in, including altitude above the horizon.
From your description, I suspect you may have been looking at the bright star Sirius which, when close to the horizon, often flashes with multiple colours. It certainly wasn't a comet, since these are large in size, not very bright, and don't flash.
2007-12-15 10:59:12 · answer #4 · answered by GeoffG 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The very bright star Sirius in Canis Major flashes in every color of the rainbow when the atmosphere is roiled by turbulence. It sounds like from your question that was in fact what you were looking at through your telescope.
2007-12-15 12:25:30 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The only comet that emits these lights is one built by de Havilland and now called Nimrod.
2007-12-17 07:26:10 · answer #6 · answered by crazeygrazey 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No you didn't. Comets are giant snowballs and are grey with a tail. they don't flash. It was most likely the navigation lights of a high flying craft, (green = starboard, red = port, blue= sometimes tail)
2007-12-15 10:28:39 · answer #7 · answered by outremerknight 3 · 0⤊ 2⤋
it might be light bluish white but not red or green a comet does not even flash it might have been a stellite.
2007-12-15 14:16:56 · answer #8 · answered by superprincess675 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
On Dec.23 look for mars in the direction of the moon.
http://cs.astronomy.com/asycs/forums/t/29908.aspx
2007-12-15 10:48:27 · answer #9 · answered by blueeee 3 · 0⤊ 2⤋
It can't be. Maybe it was a star or a reflection of light which occoured at that time.
2007-12-15 11:08:17 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋