astronomy

Terry Lovejoy

Terry Lovejoy is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Terry Lovejoy rather than just read about it. In short: Terry Lovejoy (born 20 November 1966) is an information technologist from Thornlands, Queensland, Australia, most widely known as an amateur astronomer. He has discovered six comets, including C/2011 W3 (Lovejoy), the first Kreutz Sungrazing comet discovered by ground-based observation in over 40 years.

Key takeaways

Terry Lovejoy belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Terry Lovejoy to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Terry Lovejoy from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Terry Lovejoy (born 20 November 1966) is an information technologist from Thornlands, Queensland, Australia, most widely known as an amateur astronomer. He has discovered six comets, including C/2011 W3 (Lovejoy), the first Kreutz Sungrazing comet discovered by ground-based observation in over 40 years. He is also known for popularizing procedures for modifying consumer-grade digital cameras so that they can be used for digital camera astrophotography.

Astrophotography Lovejoy is known among amateur astronomers for identifying modifications to digital cameras needed for astrophotography. Such cameras come configured with built-in filters that cut off infrared light. They also cut off some of the red light that many deep space objects emit. After he published procedures to modify those filters, many amateur astronomers were able to improve their deep space photography. Gordon J. Garradd named 61342 Lovejoy in honor of Lovejoy after discovering it on 3 August 2000. On 15 March 2007, Lovejoy used a standard camera to discover the comet C/2007 E2 (Lovejoy). Two months later, he discovered another comet, designated C/2007 K5 (Lovejoy) using the modified camera. On 27 November 2011, with his discovery of C/2011 W3 (Lovejoy), he became the first astronomer in over 40 years to discover a Kreutz Sungrazing comet from a ground-based observation. The discovery was made using a Celestron C8 Schmidt–Cassegrain telescope working at f/2.1 with a QHY9 CCD camera. On 7 September 2013, Lovejoy discovered comet C/2013 R1 (Lovejoy) which became visible to the naked eye in November 2013. On 17 August 2014, Lovejoy discovered comet C/2014 Q2 (Lovejoy) in the constellation Puppis. His most recent discovery, C/2017 E4 (Lovejoy), was confirmed on 13 March 2017.

Gallery

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Terry Lovejoy

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Terry Lovejoy claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Terry Lovejoy before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Terry Lovejoy ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Terry Lovejoy

In research: Terry Lovejoy appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Terry Lovejoy in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Terry Lovejoy is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1966 births, 21st-century Australian astronomers, Australian computer specialists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Terry Lovejoy outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Terry Lovejoy in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Terry Lovejoy means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Terry Lovejoy out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Terry Lovejoy in simple terms?

Why does Terry Lovejoy matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Terry Lovejoy?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Terry Lovejoy.