In October 2010, the bright green comet 103P/Hartley 2 passed relatively close to Earth, offering a rare opportunity for urban astrophotography. This series was captured from Brooklyn, New York City — under heavy light pollution — using a piggyback DSLR setup mounted on a Celestron NexStar 4SE.
Despite the challenges of NYC skies, stacking multiple exposures revealed the comet’s distinct green coma, caused by glowing diatomic carbon (C₂) molecules in its atmosphere.
Image 1: Stacked result showing the comet within the surrounding star field.
Image 2: Closer crop revealing the bright coma.
Image 3: Maximum zoom view highlighting the comet nucleus region and surrounding glow.
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| Comet Hartley 2, Celestron 4SE Canon 40D Brooklyn |
Capture Details
Object: Comet 103P/Hartley 2 (The Green Comet)
Date: October 12, 2010
Location: Brooklyn, NYC
Camera: Canon 40D
Mount: Piggybacked on Celestron NexStar 4SE
Lens: Canon EF 28–135mm f/3.5–5.6 IS USM
Focal Length: 28mm
Exposure: 27 × 60 seconds
ISO: 1250
White Balance: Daylight
Total Integration Time: 27 minutes
Processing Workflow
Urban light pollution required careful processing:
- Stacking performed in DeepSkyStacker
- Light pollution reduction using Photoshop (Median Noise Filter + Gaussian Blur)
- Final contrast and color adjustments in Photoshop
The embedded video below demonstrates the light pollution removal process and stacking workflow.
For techniques on reducing light pollution, see Removing Light Pollution in Urban Astrophotography, where I demonstrate advanced processing from Golden Gate Bridge skies.
Piggyback Setup – Behind the Scenes
The following images were taken during daytime and show the full piggyback configuration used for capturing Comet 103P/Hartley 2 from Brooklyn.
The Canon 40D DSLR was mounted on top of the Celestron NexStar 4SE telescope using a dedicated piggyback bracket (Item #BRKTPIG4). This configuration allows the telescope mount to track the sky while the DSLR captures wide-field images.
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| Brooklyn Astrophotography, Celestron 4SE PiggyBack, NYC Astronomy |
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| PiggyBack Camera Mount for Celestron NexStar 4SE (Item# BRKTPIG4), Comet Photo Setup, Brooklyn NYC Astrophotography |
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| NYC Astrophotography, Celestron 4SE |
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| Celestron 4SE and Canon 40D - NYC Astrophotography |
Urban Comet Imaging – A Challenge Worth Taking
Capturing a comet from New York City is always a technical challenge. High skyglow, limited visibility, and atmospheric haze make faint objects difficult to detect. However, with careful stacking and processing, even a suburban or urban observer can document transient celestial visitors.
Comet 103P/Hartley 2 was especially memorable because it was visited by NASA’s EPOXI spacecraft during its 2010 flyby — making backyard imaging even more exciting.
Comets Over New York City – 14 Years Apart
Urban comet imaging has always been one of the most challenging and rewarding forms of astrophotography. Fourteen years after capturing Comet 103P/Hartley 2 from Brooklyn, I photographed another bright visitor over New York City — Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS) visible in NYC .
The contrast between these two comet encounters is striking. In 2010, Comet 103P/Hartley 2 was faint and not visible to the naked eye from New York City. Its position had to be calculated using ephemerides, and a wide-field piggyback setup was required to locate and capture it through stacked exposures.
By comparison, Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan–ATLAS) was significantly brighter and easily visible without optical aid. Using a more modern Canon EOS Ra, a much simpler imaging approach was possible — sometimes the sky itself provides the spectacle without the need for complex techniques.
Together, these two comets illustrate different faces of urban comet photography: one a technical challenge requiring precision and persistence, the other a rare and unforgettable naked-eye visitor over the New York skyline.
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