This is an update for Comet PanSTARRS (C/2011 L4) for March 13th 2013. The reason it's for the 13th is because observational opportunities have run their course (except for possibly Hawaii and Alaska).
So, tonight, March 12th we were able to see the comet in the low western sky. However. The comet was 'not' as bright or as large as I was anticipating. Unfortunately it did require a telescope to view and a bit of guess work with the camera to get some exposures of it.
Fortunately, that work did pay of with a few decent shots (for nothing but a Nikon D80, tripod and 70-300mm lens).
Please have a look in the gallery for more images from the 12th.
This is the comet C/2011 L4 PanSTARRS path through the Western night sky during the month of March.
The good news is that tonight we were able to view the comet for almost 45 minutes and I would expect that timeframe to only increase as it gets further from the Sun. As for viewing the comet on March 13th through March 26th, I've included a path diagram below for easy identification. Based on viewing tonight, you will probably need a set of binoculars or a very clear sky since the comet is somewhat dim. However, you should still give this a shot since this comet only comes around once every 100 million years, this is literally a once in a million lifetime chance!
Feel free to check back for more information and pictures. We'll be posting more as we take them!
