Re: Planet X: MAY Coordinates [OT]

In Article <[email protected]> Daivd Tholen wrote:
> Nancy Lieder writes:
>> OK, so Pluto can be seen, as something other than a pin-point,
>> as it is MAGNIFIED by observatories.
>
> Actually, only HST has ever imaged it as something other than
> a pin-point, and that's because of the lack of atmospheric
> turbulence, coupled with a long focal length, giving an image
> scale that allowed several pixels across the disk.

Thanks, Dave, for acknowledging that an object APPEARING not much larger
than Pluto at the present time would be difficult to be seen by amateurs
unless strong magnification such as observatory scopes have were
available to assist.  Planet X is about 9 Sun-Pluto spans from Earth at
present, but closing fast over the next two years.

In Article <[email protected]> Daivd Tholen wrote:
> Nancy Lieder writes:
>> And it appears as a "blob" (i.e. DIFFUSE, not a pin-point) to some.
>
> Actually, it appears as just as much a "blob" as any other star
> suffering from atmospheric turbulence.  The seeing is a
> function of the atmosphere, not the telescope.

Big difference between 1. Pluto and 2. stars and 3. Planet X is that 1.
Pluto REFLECTS sunlight, and this is what makes if visible to amateurs
at all, 2. stars have a great intensity of light coming from the center
of the pin-point, allowing them to be seen at great distances, 3. Planet
X emits light and obviously light in the infrared spectrum, being a
smoldering brown dwarf, but does not reflect sunlight.