After nearly a month, I was finally able to get a session in. We have had 2 weeks straight of cruddy nights. Actually, although clear, tonight was not great either. There seemed to be quite a bit of moisture in the air, even though it was cool for May. That did not stop me from trying using the scope.
I started the session around 10:45pm with Saturn. It was not at its best, but pretty nonetheless, with 2 moon showing nicely. Next was the Leo Triplet. This one was tough. My neighbor's backyard light was on and washed out quite a bit of the sky. In the UWAN 16mm giving me 37x, I was able to faintly see all three galaxies. It made me want to get out to a dark sight. There just are too many street and house lights around, even at 11pm.
After Leo, I then tried to hit M104 (Sumbrero Galaxy) to no avail. The sky was too bright for this attempt. Dejected, I then tried M5, by now it was 11:30pm and my eyes were getting better adjusted. The globular cluster was an easy find, and I was quite happy. The happiness did not last too long, though as the 80mm refractor provided a mushy view of the cluster. I am not sure if it was the aperture or seeing conditions.
I then tried to hit clusters M10 and M12, but at this point the clouds were fighting me and I called it a night. It did feel great to get outside.
Objects seen:
Saturn
Leo Triplet (M65, M66, NGC3628)
M5
Several doubles
Showing posts with label Observing Reports. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Observing Reports. Show all posts
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Thursday, April 16, 2009
April 16, 2009 Observing Report
This was a quick one hour session as I was a bit tired after a late day trip to Boston with the family. We arrived home around 10pm and I was able to set the scope out at 11:00 for a proper cooldown. It was around 12:40am that I went outside to begin the session.
First up as usual was Saturn. It is still at a nice position in the sky, but bordering my southern haze, which is caused by the heat emanating from my neighbor's house. Nonetheless, the ringed planet was a pleasure to track. Brightest views of course were in the 16mm UWAN, which gives me 37.5x magnification. The 4mm BO/TMB also gave a crisp disk, but at 150x mag in the 80mm scope, the view was not bright enough tonight. There have been better nights.
Up next and very close to Saturn was the Leo Triplet. I had to go back there as during my last DSO(deep sky objects) session I forgot to get views of the galaxies. Tonights view in the 16mm UWAN did not dissapoint. The only problem was that I was starting to yearn for a bit more aperture. I began to wonder what I would be able to see in a 5" or 6" scope, refractor of course.
From there, I had a problem settling on a target. It was not the fault of the scope. I just had not put enough forethought into what to see tonight. I was not planning on it being cloudless. After looking at my charts I decided on M57. It was a quick find tonight. I started with the star Vega and moved over to the Nebula. It was best seen in the 16mm UWAN. Again aperature fever struck. I was pondering the view in larger scopes. Also I wondered if an Ultrablock filter might show me anything. Probably not in the 3.2" scope.
After enjoying the Ring Nebula, I settled on M92, the globular cluster in Hercules. It was an easy catch in the 9x50 finder, and both the 16mm UWAN and the 4mm BO/TMB provided superb views. From there I went to M13, another globular in Hercules, which provided similar views. Both of these clusters were the highlight of the night. For whatever reason, I was able to resovle stars at the edge of the clusters. I have never been able to do that before. Again, I am pushing the limits of the 80ED refractor, but they really did look superb today.
This highpoint concluded the session as I was tiring. I would have to say the theme of the night was aperture fever. Oh, and since I have not discussed the mount up to this point, it must have done it's job and not gotten in the way. The EZ Touch is really great. Tracking is easy and the movement is so smooth that finding object is a breeze. The mount has been a great investment and I know that it will easily support that larger scope I see myself getting when the time is
right.
Objects seen:
Saturn
Leo Triplet (M65, M66, NGC3628)
M57
M92
M13
First up as usual was Saturn. It is still at a nice position in the sky, but bordering my southern haze, which is caused by the heat emanating from my neighbor's house. Nonetheless, the ringed planet was a pleasure to track. Brightest views of course were in the 16mm UWAN, which gives me 37.5x magnification. The 4mm BO/TMB also gave a crisp disk, but at 150x mag in the 80mm scope, the view was not bright enough tonight. There have been better nights.
Up next and very close to Saturn was the Leo Triplet. I had to go back there as during my last DSO(deep sky objects) session I forgot to get views of the galaxies. Tonights view in the 16mm UWAN did not dissapoint. The only problem was that I was starting to yearn for a bit more aperture. I began to wonder what I would be able to see in a 5" or 6" scope, refractor of course.
From there, I had a problem settling on a target. It was not the fault of the scope. I just had not put enough forethought into what to see tonight. I was not planning on it being cloudless. After looking at my charts I decided on M57. It was a quick find tonight. I started with the star Vega and moved over to the Nebula. It was best seen in the 16mm UWAN. Again aperature fever struck. I was pondering the view in larger scopes. Also I wondered if an Ultrablock filter might show me anything. Probably not in the 3.2" scope.
After enjoying the Ring Nebula, I settled on M92, the globular cluster in Hercules. It was an easy catch in the 9x50 finder, and both the 16mm UWAN and the 4mm BO/TMB provided superb views. From there I went to M13, another globular in Hercules, which provided similar views. Both of these clusters were the highlight of the night. For whatever reason, I was able to resovle stars at the edge of the clusters. I have never been able to do that before. Again, I am pushing the limits of the 80ED refractor, but they really did look superb today.
This highpoint concluded the session as I was tiring. I would have to say the theme of the night was aperture fever. Oh, and since I have not discussed the mount up to this point, it must have done it's job and not gotten in the way. The EZ Touch is really great. Tracking is easy and the movement is so smooth that finding object is a breeze. The mount has been a great investment and I know that it will easily support that larger scope I see myself getting when the time is
right.
Objects seen:
Saturn
Leo Triplet (M65, M66, NGC3628)
M57
M92
M13
Monday, October 15, 2007
October 14, 2007 Observing Report
Whohoo!! It has been nearly a month since my last session. This one was short, about 50min, but sweet. I have been really tired lately, lots going on at the home. The skies were super clear, Andromeda could be seen with the naked eye, as well as several open clusters.
Here is the list from last night with comments.
11:00PM - 11:50PM
M45 (Pleiades): This looked superb. Lots of stars were apparent, with some faint nebulosity.
Alderbaran in Taurus: Was fun to look at. The star was superb, but was eclipsed by the amount of stars in the area. When I get a long session, I would like too spend some more time here.
NGC869/884 (Double Cluster): Excellent at 30x. More stars than any other time viewed.
M31 (Andromeda Galaxy): This was my best view ever. Got alot of detail even at 60x. Need to spend more time here as well.
M34 (Open Cluster): This I ran into again. Was a great site and had to look at the Pocket Sky Atlas to confirm.
M27 (Dumbbell Nebula): Looked nice. Got rare detail at 60x. Would like to get a UHC or OIII filter to try on this.
Mars: The red planet was in a tough spot. At 11:45PM, it was just rising over the neighbors garage. Another month and it will look great around midnight.
After a month of clouds, the moon and sick children, I was happy with the quick session that I got. I am still not happy with the mount, but c'est la vie. When funds permit, I will be upgrading.
Here is the list from last night with comments.
11:00PM - 11:50PM
M45 (Pleiades): This looked superb. Lots of stars were apparent, with some faint nebulosity.
Alderbaran in Taurus: Was fun to look at. The star was superb, but was eclipsed by the amount of stars in the area. When I get a long session, I would like too spend some more time here.
NGC869/884 (Double Cluster): Excellent at 30x. More stars than any other time viewed.
M31 (Andromeda Galaxy): This was my best view ever. Got alot of detail even at 60x. Need to spend more time here as well.
M34 (Open Cluster): This I ran into again. Was a great site and had to look at the Pocket Sky Atlas to confirm.
M27 (Dumbbell Nebula): Looked nice. Got rare detail at 60x. Would like to get a UHC or OIII filter to try on this.
Mars: The red planet was in a tough spot. At 11:45PM, it was just rising over the neighbors garage. Another month and it will look great around midnight.
After a month of clouds, the moon and sick children, I was happy with the quick session that I got. I am still not happy with the mount, but c'est la vie. When funds permit, I will be upgrading.
Friday, September 14, 2007
September 13, 2007 Observing Report
Had a quick look last night around 8:00-8:15PM. I want to get a chance to find M101. It was pretty on the horizon, maybe 22 degrees. I did find it, but got not much more than the central core. It took the 10mm plossl at 60x to verify.
I then moved the scope over to Jupiter, which was even lower in the sky at about 18 degrees. It was just over some trees. I did see some nice cloud bands at 150x, but had to end the session because of a hungry child(bottle time) At least I can check another Messier off the list.
I then moved the scope over to Jupiter, which was even lower in the sky at about 18 degrees. It was just over some trees. I did see some nice cloud bands at 150x, but had to end the session because of a hungry child(bottle time) At least I can check another Messier off the list.
Thursday, September 13, 2007
September 12, 2007 Observing Report
Transparency was great, 9 out of 10. Could see the Milky Way nicely across the sky. I am always awed by the sight. The air was cool with a slight wind, around 5-7 mph.
This time I had 2 sessions. The first was from 10:30-11:00PM. The goal was to locate Uranus and Neptune. Uranus was found easily at 24x with the 25mm plossl. Neptune eluded me tonight. It was a little lower in the sky and light pollution coupled with my unfamiliarity with the area of the sky lead to my failure. To feel better, I strolled over to M27 and M57. I never tire of these subjects and they did not fail to impress. M27 looked superb all the way to 60x, while M57 was pushed successfully to 150x. It did not breakdown at all and was quite the sight.
The last session started around 1:10AM. The following subjects were viewed:
M45: Crystal clear in the 25mm, a beautiful sight
Mars: Looked great at 150x with the BO/TMB 4mm.
The disc seemed to be about two thirds formed.
M31: Nice shape at 30x with a 20mm plossl. Great night for this galaxy.
M103: First Time. One of many clusters in the area, this one framed nicely at 60x.
NGC457: First Time. Another nice cluster in the area. I love these.
NGC889/: The Perseus Double cluster again. Can't help but going there.
NGC884
M34: First Time. Very nice looking cluster especially the double star near the middle.
As I was closing up shop at 2:00AM, I noticed The Hunter starting to rise towards the northeast. It was a very nice sight to close the night with. That area of the sky has so much to offer now.
This time I had 2 sessions. The first was from 10:30-11:00PM. The goal was to locate Uranus and Neptune. Uranus was found easily at 24x with the 25mm plossl. Neptune eluded me tonight. It was a little lower in the sky and light pollution coupled with my unfamiliarity with the area of the sky lead to my failure. To feel better, I strolled over to M27 and M57. I never tire of these subjects and they did not fail to impress. M27 looked superb all the way to 60x, while M57 was pushed successfully to 150x. It did not breakdown at all and was quite the sight.
The last session started around 1:10AM. The following subjects were viewed:
M45: Crystal clear in the 25mm, a beautiful sight
Mars: Looked great at 150x with the BO/TMB 4mm.
The disc seemed to be about two thirds formed.
M31: Nice shape at 30x with a 20mm plossl. Great night for this galaxy.
M103: First Time. One of many clusters in the area, this one framed nicely at 60x.
NGC457: First Time. Another nice cluster in the area. I love these.
NGC889/: The Perseus Double cluster again. Can't help but going there.
NGC884
M34: First Time. Very nice looking cluster especially the double star near the middle.
As I was closing up shop at 2:00AM, I noticed The Hunter starting to rise towards the northeast. It was a very nice sight to close the night with. That area of the sky has so much to offer now.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
September 4, 2007 Observing Report
I had 1 good, 1 great and 1 awesome session last night. Transparency was very good here. The Andromeda galaxy was visible with the naked eye.
The first session was around 8PM. I spent a few minutes looking at Jupiter. It was really nice save for the wispy clouds that were cruising through now and then. I did see several more clouds bands then usual, using the BO/TMB 4mm in my 80ED. At 150x the view was holding pretty steady. At this time, I had to go back in the house to put the littlest one down to sleep, which requires a half hour of listening to jazz on PBS, Eric in the Evening for you in the New England area.
Around 10:00PM, I went back out for a half hour session w/ The Ring and surrounding area. The views were great and I was able to split a few of double over there. M57 was just wonderful, even at 150x. I know I was pushing the limits of an 80mm scope, but the image was still pretty bright. From my experience the past few night, I know that the seeing conditions played a major role in this. Aperture is king, but a good clear night can make a world of difference.
At about 10:30PM I had to go back inside to workout and unplug my daughter from her feeding tube. The 3rd session started at 12:30AM and lasted till a bit after 1:30AM and was the bet of the night. The skies were much darker than the earlier sessions.
The list of items I saw were:
M45
Collinder 399 (Coathanger or Brochhi's Cluster) First time
M27
M15 First Time
M2 First Time
NGC884, NGC869 (Perseus Double Cluster)
NGC7789 First Time
Mars
M31
All items seen were great. It truly love finding the globulars with a small aperture scope. Mars looked wonderful at 150x and I can only imagine how it will look in December.
The first session was around 8PM. I spent a few minutes looking at Jupiter. It was really nice save for the wispy clouds that were cruising through now and then. I did see several more clouds bands then usual, using the BO/TMB 4mm in my 80ED. At 150x the view was holding pretty steady. At this time, I had to go back in the house to put the littlest one down to sleep, which requires a half hour of listening to jazz on PBS, Eric in the Evening for you in the New England area.
Around 10:00PM, I went back out for a half hour session w/ The Ring and surrounding area. The views were great and I was able to split a few of double over there. M57 was just wonderful, even at 150x. I know I was pushing the limits of an 80mm scope, but the image was still pretty bright. From my experience the past few night, I know that the seeing conditions played a major role in this. Aperture is king, but a good clear night can make a world of difference.
At about 10:30PM I had to go back inside to workout and unplug my daughter from her feeding tube. The 3rd session started at 12:30AM and lasted till a bit after 1:30AM and was the bet of the night. The skies were much darker than the earlier sessions.
The list of items I saw were:
M45
Collinder 399 (Coathanger or Brochhi's Cluster) First time
M27
M15 First Time
M2 First Time
NGC884, NGC869 (Perseus Double Cluster)
NGC7789 First Time
Mars
M31
All items seen were great. It truly love finding the globulars with a small aperture scope. Mars looked wonderful at 150x and I can only imagine how it will look in December.
Sunday, September 2, 2007
September 1, 2007 Observing Report
Tonight was very clear before the moon came out. Transparency was about 7 out of 10. I got to test a new eyepiece. Ended up getting a used BO/TMB 4mm off of Astromart and I have to say I was very impressed. The FOV is great compared to the plossls and the eye relief is so big that it too some getting used to. Also, the 4mm eyepiece gives me a magnification of 150x, which is at the limit of the 80mm scope.
Jupiter looked good, but I think it suffered from late summer haze. I could see several cloud bands, but could remember a more contrasty image on better viewing nights. The size was still impressive though.
M27 lost some detail as I went from the 10mm plossl to the 4mm BO/TMB, but M57 was another story. The 4mm eyepiece brought out some extra detail in the Ring. I loved the view and could have stayed there longer, but the moon was starting to rise, and I wanted to see some globulars.
I moved to M13 and M92. Both looked great in the BO/TMB eyepiece. I could actually resolve some core detail in both. I was surprised at this, because I thought such a high mag eyepiece would cause some loss of detail. The moon was my last subject of the night. It ended up being my favorite too. What detail this eyepiece showed and with little loss of light.
Tonight I also split Albireo, in Cygnus, at 30x with the 20mm Sirius Plossl. It was quite the sight. The secondary star had a bluish tint to it, while the primary was yellow. M31 also provided some good views to it. I would like to devote some more time to it as it gets higher in the sky. It is definitely worth a trip to darker sky.
My only complaint tonight was the mount. I definitely feel that I am using it beyond it's capability. I had problems keeping some object in view and could not track as well as I wanted to.
Jupiter looked good, but I think it suffered from late summer haze. I could see several cloud bands, but could remember a more contrasty image on better viewing nights. The size was still impressive though.
M27 lost some detail as I went from the 10mm plossl to the 4mm BO/TMB, but M57 was another story. The 4mm eyepiece brought out some extra detail in the Ring. I loved the view and could have stayed there longer, but the moon was starting to rise, and I wanted to see some globulars.
I moved to M13 and M92. Both looked great in the BO/TMB eyepiece. I could actually resolve some core detail in both. I was surprised at this, because I thought such a high mag eyepiece would cause some loss of detail. The moon was my last subject of the night. It ended up being my favorite too. What detail this eyepiece showed and with little loss of light.
Tonight I also split Albireo, in Cygnus, at 30x with the 20mm Sirius Plossl. It was quite the sight. The secondary star had a bluish tint to it, while the primary was yellow. M31 also provided some good views to it. I would like to devote some more time to it as it gets higher in the sky. It is definitely worth a trip to darker sky.
My only complaint tonight was the mount. I definitely feel that I am using it beyond it's capability. I had problems keeping some object in view and could not track as well as I wanted to.
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