Here is a 60-minute combined exposure showing Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) in the early morning hours and moving through the constellation Bootes.
You can see the thin ion tails extending to the upper left, likely the result of a variable solar wind on ions ejected by the icy comet nucleus. The comet's white dust tail is visible to the left and much shorter. The green glow is the comet's coma, caused by glowing carbon gas. Comet ZTF is expected to pass nearest the Earth in early February, after which it should dim dramatically. (REF:
https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230109.html).
From EarthSky.org “Astronomers call this comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF). It got its name because it was the third such object to be discovered in the fifth half-month (A, B, C, D, E) of 2022. The ZTF stands for the Zwicky Transient Facility, which uses the 48-inch Samuel Oschin robotic telescope, located at Mt. Palomar in southern California.”
Tech Specs: Sky-Watcher Esprit 120ED Telescope, ZWO AS2600mc-Pro running at -10C, Celestron CGEM-DX mount, 60 x 60 second guided exposures, focused with a ZWO EAF, controlled with a ZWO ASIAir Pro. Processed using DSS and PixInsight. Image Date: January 16, 2023. Location: The Dark Side Observatory (W59), Weatherly, PA, USA (Bortle Class 4).
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