This color image of comet C/1999 S4 (LINEAR) was taken on July 21 from my light polluted backyard in Scottsdale, Arizona. Shortly after this date, the comet broke into several pieces and faded from view. The composite CCD image is the sum of individual exposures through red, green, and blue filters. The comet was only five days away from perihelion when this image was taken. The comet was moving so quickly, and as a result the background stars are in different positions for each exposure. This comet was discovered by the Lincoln Laboratory Near Earth Asteroid Research (LINEAR) project.
This is a composite of eight 30 second exposure CCD images for each red, green, and blue filter using an ST-8E and a CFW-8 color filter wheel. The telescope was a Takahashi FS-128 refractor operating at f8. MaxIm DL/CCD was used for image acquisition and processing.
Constellation: Ursa Major
RA: 09h 45m 53.1s Dec: +56d 20' 31"
July 21, 2000 at 0430 U.T.
Image by Sid Leach
Scottsdale, Arizona
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