David Mathre Photography

Astrophotography

  • Comet 220P/McNaught (16-June-2026)

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    David Mathre
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    Comet 220P/McNaught is now post-perihelion (14-June-2026) and is still visible with my Vespera 3 telescope. I am now able to observe the comet without the trees being in the way. I updated the manual target for the Vespera 3 telescope with the new coordinates for the comet from Stellarium (RA/Dec: 00h40m08s; 04°00’15”). The observation was started at 03:29 and allowed continue until 04:00. The sky gets bright really early this time of the year — it is only a few days before the summer solstice.

    I processed the composite 188 frame exposure (1880 sec) TIFF file with PixInsight (AutomaticBackgroundExtractor, SpectrophotometricColorCorrector, NoiseXterminator). When processing the image with PixInsight, AutomaticBackgroundExtractor did a better job than GradientCorrection for flattening the background. Ultimately, I needed to crop the image. The brightness in the corner of the full image is probably due to the early dawn. The straight out of the telescope (SOOF) JPG and 16-bit RAW/TIFF images are available on my PhotoShelter site (20260616).

    Vespera 3

    Comet 220P/McNaught viewed from my backyard with a Vespera 3 Telescope. Frames: 0189; Total exposure time: 1880 sec.
    Comet 220P/McNaught viewed from my backyard with a Vespera 3 Telescope. Frames: 0189; Total exposure time: 1880 sec. Image processed with PixInsight. Cropped (0.5° width)
    Comet 220P/McNaught viewed from my backyard with a Vespera 3 Telescope. Frames: 0189; Total exposure time: 1880 sec.
    Comet 220P/McNaught viewed from my backyard with a Vespera 3 Telescope. Frames: 0189; Total exposure time: 1880 sec. Image processed with PixInsight. Annotated with astro grid.
    Comet 220P/McNaught viewed from my backyard with a Vespera 3 Telescope. Frames: 0189; Total exposure time: 1880 sec.
    Comet 220P/McNaught viewed from my backyard with a Vespera 3 Telescope. Frames: 0189; Total exposure time: 1880 sec. Unprocessed jpg image.

    The comet is very faint, and the tail is barely visible. Dimmer than on 06-June and 09-June. The estimated magnitude is 12.4. At this point the comet is 224 M km (1.5 AU) from earth. It will be a little over 5 years before it returns.

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  • Comet C220P/McNaught (09-June-2026)

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    David Mathre
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    The night was clear, so I attempted to view comet 220P/McNaught again (RA/Dec: 00h21m31s, +02°41’46”). This time with the Vespera telescopes closer to the house. Trees were still in the way, and I was not able to observe the comet with the Vespera 3 telescope. The Vespera Pro 2 telescope was able to lock on and track the comet, through an opening between the limbs and leaves of the trees next to the house. The moon was also bright and nearby in the sky. The composite view (131 images, 1310 sec) had a messy background.

    Vespera Pro 2

    Comet 220P/McNaught viewed from my backyard with a Vespera Pro 2 Telescope. Frames: 0132; total exposure time: 1310 sec.
    Comet 220P/McNaught viewed from my backyard with a Vespera Pro 2 Telescope. Frames: 0132; Total exposure time: 1310 sec. Unprocessed jpg image.

    The image needed a lot of processing with PixInsight (GradientCorrection, SpectrophometricColorCorrection, NoiseXterminator) but did show the comet after cropping out the problematic background.

    Comet 220P/McNaught viewed from my backyard with a Vespera Pro 2 Telescope. Frames: 0132; total exposure time: 1310 sec.
    Comet 220P/McNaught viewed from my backyard with a Vespera Pro 2 Telescope. Frames: 0132; Total exposure time: 1310 sec. Image processed with PixInsight. Cropped (0.5° width). Annotated with astro grid.

    The comet was fainter and the tail more difuse than on 06-June-2026. The estimated magnitude was +11.2. The unprocessed SOOT (straight out of the telescope) jpg and raw/tiff images for this observation are available on my PhotoShelter site (20260609).

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  • Comet C220P/McNaught (06-June-2026)

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    David Mathre
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    I saw a note on the Space Weather site that comet C220P/McNaught just increased in brightness. I looked up the coordinates (RA/Dec (J2000.0): 0h13m22s/+2°06’01”) using Stellarium. It looked like it may be visible from my location early in the morning. At this time of the year that is really early. Astronomical dawn starts at 02:36. I moved the Vespera 3 telescope to a location in the far backyard to have visibility to the east above the tree line where I thought the comet might be visible. At 03:00 after initializing the Vespera 3 telescope and programing the coordinates as a manual target I had the telescope look for the comet. I realized that there was still a tree in the way.

    I moved the telescope, reinitialized it, and had it look for the comet again. At 03:30 the Vespera 3 telescope found the comet, and I was able to get an image. Even though the sky was getting brighter, I followed up with three more observations at 03:46, 04:00, and 04:18. By the time of the last observation clouds started appearing and the sky was getting too bright. Sunrise was at 05:26.

    Comet 220P/McNaught viewed from my backyard with a Vespera 3 Telescope. Frames: 0071; Total exposure time: 700 sec.
    Comet 220P/McNaught viewed from my backyard with a Vespera 3 Telescope. Frames: 0071; Total exposure time: 700 sec. Image processed with PixInsight. Cropped (0.5° width)
    Comet 220P/McNaught viewed from my backyard with a Vespera 3 Telescope. Frames: 0071; Total exposure time: 700 sec.
    Comet 220P/McNaught viewed from my backyard with a Vespera 3 Telescope. Frames: 0071; Total exposure time: 700 sec. Image processed with PixInsight. Annotated with astro grid.
    Comet 220P/McNaught viewed from my backyard with a Vespera 3 Telescope. Frames: 0071; Total exposure time: 700 sec.
    Comet 220P/McNaught viewed from my backyard with a Vespera 3 Telescope. Frames: 0071; Total exposure time: 700 sec. Unprocessed jpg image.

    The comet C220P/McNaught was not very bright. The estimated magnitude was +8.7 and is just barely visible in the unprocessed jpg image. To make the comet more visible, I processed the RAW/TIFF file with PixInsight (GradientCorrection, SprectrophotometricColorCalibration, and NoiseXterminator).

    The head of the comet has the green color from ionization of diatomic carbon (C2) and there is a short tail. I added the grid to the image to get an estimate of the length of the tail. The comet is still approaching the sun (perihelion on 14-June) so I am not sure if I will have another opportunity to view it again.

    The unprocessed SOOT (straight out of the telescope) jpg and raw/tiff images for this and the other observations are available to view on my PhotoShelter site (20260606). Time-lapse videos recording the overnight viewing conditions (180° night sky and 360° little planet) for the night are available on my Time-Lapse site (05-June-2026).

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About the author

I am a scientist by training (Eckerd College, BSc; Caltech, Ph.D.). I worked for 27 years as a Chemist in the Pharmaceutical Industry developing processes to manufacture medicines for human and animal health. I now spend my time as a photographer and world traveler. My interests include the natural world, wildlife, landscapes, sky, and seascapes, travel, and astrophotography. I look for unique ways of viewing the world and presenting my images. I have traveled to over 55 countries in six continents, often on Semester at Sea voyages. While at home in New Jersey, I spend time observing and photographing the plants and animals while expanding a wildflower garden/meadow in the backyard. When the sky is clear, I have telescopes viewing the night sky.

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Comet Comet 220P/McNaught Comet C2025/A6 Comet C2025/R2 Jupiter Moon occultation Optimization PixInsight Singularity Stellarium Stellina Telescope time-lapse Topaz Photo Vaonis Vespera Vespera Classic Vespera II Vespera III Vespera Passengers Vespera Pro Vespera Pro 2

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