Three
recent crop pictures in the Netherlands show night sky images of
comet C/2011 C1 (McNaught) from April to June of 2011
Comet C/2011 C1 (McNaught) is currently the brightest comet in
Earth’s skies, although still rather dim at magnitude 9 (see
cometchasing.skyhound). Yet it may become much brighter
soon, if three recent crop pictures from the Netherlands are any
guide?
Bosschenhoofd on April 24, 2011 (see
Bosschenhoofd2011a) seemed to show a predicted outburst of
comet C/2011 C1 near the sky location of Jupiter, when five
planets Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Uranus line up at
sunrise in Earth’s sky on June 3, 2011 or a nearby date.
Hoeven on April 29-30, 2011 (see
Hoeven2011a) seemed to show an approach of comet C/2011 C1
(the “glowing circle” with a “tail”) to an unusual grouping of
five planets and the Moon in Earth’s sky on April 31, 2011.
Hoeven Nature Preserve on May 9, 2011 (see
hoeven2011b) now seems to show how comet C/2011 C1 will
cross Earth’s imaginary orbit through space on May
19, 2011, then cross Mars’s imaginary orbit through space on
June 22, 2011. The orbit of Earth has been “thinly doubled” over
one particular stretch of that crop picture, in order to suggest
that comet C2011/C1 is following a similar curved path:
There can be little doubt that this crop picture shows a “tailed
comet crossing Earth orbit”, and C/2011 C1 is currently the only
comet in Earth’s skies which fits that description. The relative
locations of Earth, Mercury and Venus likewise appear correct
for a date of May 19, when the orbit of comet C/2011 C1
literally “crosses over” the orbit of planet Earth. Furthermore,
a series of connected circles outside of the main diagram seem
to tell where five planets Earth, Mercury, Venus,
Mars and Jupiter will be located on May 19, 2011, and even
suggest in which direction those planets are moving (blue
arrow):
The
orbital location of Jupiter has not been shown here, but may be
confirmed using “Solar System Live” (see
www.fourmilab.ch). All of the remaining circles seem to tell
where Earth, Mercury, Venus, Mars and Jupiter will be located on
June 22, 2011, when comet C/2011 C1 (McNaught) crosses the
imaginary orbit of Mars:
Earlier planetary locations on May 19 have been labeled above
with “red crosses”. Mercury moves the most rapidly in its orbit
around the Sun, followed by Venus, Earth, Mars and Jupiter which
moves the most slowly. A second inner circle shown for “Mercury”
(at upper right) therefore gives an accurate indication of some
near-future date close to June 22.
One
new prediction from the April 29 or May 9 crop pictures is that
comet C/2011 C1 will “grow a tail” around May 19,
when it crosses Earth orbit, and before it supposedly
outbursts on June 3 or a nearby date. Some of these
predictions were given apparently two years ago at Milk Hill in
June of 2009 (see
time2011b). It will be interesting to learn whether we have
understood their crop-based symbols properly, and if either
astronomical prediction really comes true?
This
is a totally different comet from C/2010 X1 Elenin, whose image
appeared in an English crop picture last July (see
time2011d), and is still very dim at magnitude 14.
Red
Collie
(Dr.
Horace R. Drew, Caltech 1976-81, MRC LMB Cambridge, 1982-1986,
CSIRO Australia 1987-2010)
