REPLAY: All About Comet ISON in Slooh Webcast

by SPACE.com Staff

Date: 19 May 2013 Time: 11:00 AM ET

NOTE: Today's webcast will be starting later than planned due to technical glitches. You can get the latest webcast news directly from the Slooh Space Camera website at: http://www.slooh.com

The online Slooh Space Camera will offer live views of Comet ISON, the potential "comet of the century," today at 4:45 p.m. EDT (2045 GMT) and you can follow the webcast here.

Full Story: Comet ISON: How to See Potential 'Comet of the Century' Online Today

Photos of Comet ISON: A Potentially Great Comet

Comet of the Century? Sun-Grazing Comet ISON Explained: Infographic

During today's webcast, Slooh officials will provide live views of Comet ISON using remotely operated telescopes in the Canary Islands, off the west coast of Africa. Slooh producer Paul Cox will host the webcast and will be joined by senior space scientist Padma Yanamandra-Fisher of the Space Science Institute in Boulder, Colo., who is helping coordinate NASA's Comet ISON Observing Campaign to track the icy wanderer.

You can also follow the Slooh webcast directly using Slooh's iPad app or the Slooh website: http://www.slooh.com.

REPLAY: Huge Solar Flares of May 2013

The sun is ramping up in solar activity and fired off the four strongest solar flares of the year this week. You can see a live view of the sun today at 1p.m. EDT (1700 GMT) courtesy of a live webcast from the online Slooh Space Camera.

Full Story: Biggest Solar Flares of the Year Erupt from Active Sun: Video

Solar Flares Explained: What You Need to Know

Gallery: Major X-Class Solar Flares Unleashed by Sun: Photos

Videos:

Major Fireworks On Sun - Two X-Flares On Same Day

Multiple Spacecraft See First Solar X-Flare of 2013

First Solar X-Flare Of The Year Is A Doozy

The sun unleashed an X1.7-class solar flare just after 10 p.m. EDT Sunday night (0200 GMT) and then an even stronger X2.8-class solar flare at midday on Monday. Those were followed by an X3.2 flare Monday night and then an X1.2 flare on Tuesday. All of the flares erupterd from the same active region on the far side of the sun, just beyond the sun's left side as viewed from Earth. In upcoming days, the active region will rotate into view and face the Earth, NASA scientists said.

First Story: Major Solar Flare Erupts from the Sun, Strongest of 2013

Recently:

Slooh Space Camera's Solar Eclipse Views: May 9/10

Editor's Note: The webcasts have ended. See our new photo gallery, which will be updated throughout the evening with new images as they are sent in:

'Ring of Fire' Solar Eclipse of May 2013: Photos and Maps

Video: Solar Eclipse Seen Through Clouds Over Australia

The Slooh Space Camera will broadcast live views and expert commentary about today's annular solar eclipse set to take place on Thursday (May 9). Slooh will begin broadcasting at 5:30 p.m. EDT (2130 GMT) as the positioning of the moon makes the sun look like a "ring of fire" in the daylight sky. The solar eclipse will be visible from certain parts of Australia and the southern Pacific Ocean. Slooh's cameras will broadcast views from Australia. You can watch the webcast directly from Slooh's iPad app or the group's website: http://events.slooh.com/

Multimedia:

Gallery: How to Safely Photograph the Sun: A Photo Guide

Gallery: Spectacular Annular Solar Eclipse of May 20, 2012

How to Safely Observe the Sun: Infographic

Solar Eclipses: An Observer's Guide: Infographic

"The precise line up or syzygy of the sun, moon, and Earth have intrigued primitive cultures for millennia," Bob Berman contributing editor and monthly columnist for Astronomy Magazine said in a statement. "Here are the two most important and influential celestial bodies, so far as life on Earth is concerned, and on that day we can actually watch their clockwork motions. We observe firsthand as the Moon orbits around us at 2,250 miles per hour, showing off its speed as it centrally crosses the disk of the Sun. It's pretty dramatic."

Berman will be an expert participant in the broadcast. The window above will host the webcast when it begins Thursday.

WARNING: Never look directly at the sun during an eclipse with a telescope or your unaided eye. Severe eye damage can result and scientists use special filters to safely view the sun.

Editor's note: If you live in the observing area of today's solar eclipse and safely snap an amazing picture of the sun that you'd like to share for a possible story or image gallery, send photos, comments and your name and location to Managing Editor Tariq Malik atspacephotos@space.com.

(Archived Webcast)

Officials from the online Slooh Space Camera broadcast live shots of Comet ISON from their remote observatory off the west coast of Africa in the Canary Islands.SPACE.com's Managing Editor Tariq Malik, Slooh's President Patrick Paolucci and Astronomy Magazine's Bob Berman participated in the event.

Photos of Comet ISON: A Potentially Great Comet

"Our goal with these ISON update shows is to give the general public an early view of this comet as it heads toward the Sun and Earth — prior to its encounters in late November and December respectively," Paolucci said in a statement.

You can also follow the Slooh webcast live via the Slooh Space Camera website.

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