This image shows the tail of Comet ISON (C/2012 S1) beginning to develop some structure. We want you to get your family outside to observe this celestial visitor, so we're offering those who do (and capture the moment on camera) prizes! // photo by Gerald Rhemann
The much discussed
Comet ISON reaches perihelion, its brightest moment, on November 28, Thanksgiving in the U.S. By then it will be only a short distance from the Sun in the daytime sky. You’ll probably be busy watching football and enjoying family and perhaps not observing the comet when it’s extremely close to the Sun’s disk. But in the days running up to perihelion and those afterward, you and your family can interrupt holiday fun to view this celestial visitor.
Our Comet ISON Family Photo Contest encourages you to capture your family — significant others, kids, aunts, uncles, grandparents, pets, family friends (if your extended family doesn’t live close by), the whole gang — out experiencing this special event. Share the picture with us via social media, no matter how large or how small your family may be, along with a few words about why you love observing the sky. Post it to our Facebook wall, share it on Twitter using the hashtag #EverythingISON, or tag us on Google Plus, and we’ll be on the lookout. But be sure to share your photos by midnight EST December 8.
The staff of Astronomy will go through the photos, and by December 20, 2013, we’ll announce our favorite five. Each will receive a one-year subscription to Astronomy and a copy of The Great Comet of 2013 signed by the Astronomy’s staff.
Good luck!