Another quick session in the backyard after work. Dew on my secondary
ended this session. Holmes is continuing to expand. Tonight's
measurement (with my handy dandy, just-out-of-the-box, illuminated
reticle micro whatsis) yields a whopping 11.45'. The comet is so
bright, that I didn't even need to use the illuminator, as I could get
a better read of the extent of it with no added light, and still read
the scale. I also checked the stellar core against the concentric
circles, and it looks to be centered, even though offset central
brightening seems to indicate otherwise. The NE quadrant of the coma's
rim is brighter and more coherent than its SW counterpart, which
appears more diffuse, though still round. I detected 2 faint stars in
the coma, one almost tangent to the W. edge, and another E. of the
brighter inner 'fan'. The field is fairly rich in stars, so I sketched
it, and then checked the apparent diameter against the field on Starry
Night. The results compare favorably. I hereby second David Kingsley's
recommendation of the Celestron micro guide eyepiece. It works, and its
fun to use. At this rate the comet may be the size of the full moon in
a week or less. It is approaching 'great pumpkin' status, I dare say.
-Bill