Galaxy Zoo Talk

Is this a comet? No, unfortunately it isn't.

  • Alpha_Aurigae by Alpha_Aurigae

    enter image description here

    enter image description here

    Posted

  • Alpha_Aurigae by Alpha_Aurigae

    PS I found this one when classifying, not by checking out other volunteers' collections 😃

    So that begs the question, if this is a comet, is it known?

    Posted

  • Alpha_Aurigae by Alpha_Aurigae

    Sky View

    (Can't make heads nor (comet) tails of it:

    enter image description here

    enter image description here

    Posted

  • JeanTate by JeanTate

    It's not a comet, if only because it doesn't move* (it's a GALEX source as well).

    DR10 gives it's z_ph as 0.010 ± 0.0067 and 0.023 ± 0.0318, which doesn't seem wildly wrong. So, possibly a merging/remnant object (the tail is a give-away), with at least a nuclear starburst, possibly an AGN. It's not white, so it's not post-starburst (a.k.a. quenched, E+A), and little hint of any dust (otherwise it'd likely be a 2MASS object, for example).

    Do you know how to look up an object in the WISE database (they have neat images too)? Holler if you'd like help!

    *a comet would appear to move between one SDSS filter and any other, so it'd have a strange set of colors in SDSS images; the GZ forum threads on comets contain good examples.

    Posted

  • Alpha_Aurigae by Alpha_Aurigae

    I am hollering here, Jean 😃. As long as it is not that difficult I am willing to give it a try.

    A pity it isn't a comet, I started having doubts when I saw the Sky View images. Still it is an interesting object.

    PS I should have known this isn't a comet. For one who collects asteroids and comets I made a very bad mistake here.

    Posted

  • JeanTate by JeanTate in response to Alpha Aurigae's comment.

    Many different places to start; this one is pretty direct:

    1. go here
    2. plug in the coordinates (4 after the decimal point are more than enough; "271.0816, 0.1345" in this case) into the "Target Name/Coordinates" box right at the top
    3. scroll down to "Image Availability"
    4. click "GO" button on the "WISE AllWISE Release Atlas Image" line (the "WISE All-Sky Release Atlas Image" one would likely work too)
    5. in the new window, you'll see a cyan circle centered on your position; you'll need to do some zooming in and moving around to get your target in the center
    6. click on the "Multi-Color" tab, left side, near top; move the panes so that this image is as big as you want.

    Your galaxy is very bright in the WISE band 3 and 4; very likely that's because there's an AGN there (unlikely to be extremely dusty, which is the other likely reason to be so bright for a local universe galaxy).

    Posted