GeminiFocus July 2013 | Page 26

Featured Press Release: Comet ISON Hurtles Toward an Uncertain Destiny with the Sun Images of Comet ISON between early February to May hint at coming changes as the comet speeds into the inner Solar System. A new series of images from Gemini Observatory shows Comet C/2012 S1 (ISON) racing toward an uncomfortably close rendezvous with the Sun. In late November the comet could present a stunning sight in the twilight sky and remain easily visible, or even brilliant, into early December of this year. The time-sequence images below, spanning early February through May 2013, show the comet’s remarkable activity despite its current great distance from the Sun and Earth. The information gleaned from the series provides vital clues as to the comet’s overall behavior and 26 GeminiFocus July2013