Prettiest Picture Yet of Comet Ison

Comet ISON as photographed from the Teide observatory in the Canary Islands on Nov. 22, 2013. (Source: J.C. Casado/iac.es) If you haven't been able to get up before dawn to witness Comet Ison as it makes its final approach toward the sun, I'm thinking this beautiful photograph may be the next best thing. It was shot from the Teide Observatory in the Canary Islands on Friday, right before sunrise. You're looking down on the cloud deck, and the comet, with its long, glowing tail, is toward the top-center of the picture. (Mercury is the larger glowing spot partially obscured by clouds.) And if that's not enough, check out this timelapse taken on the same morning: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtEb376ARsI&feature=youtu.be Still not enough? You can find more pictures here. As I'm writing this at 2 p.m. MST on Sunday, Nov. 24, the comet is 28 million miles from the sun, and traveling at 172,000 ...