Winter and summer together.

[ollypenrice]

After a cloudy day with a bit of drizzle we weren't too hopeful for last night. However it cleared quite promisingly. We have imager and friend Tom O'Donoghue staying this week and since he knows the imaging kit (a lot of it's his!) I had more spare time than usual and could sit in my nice new lounger chair and take a cruise with the 8x42s. And then sky got better...and better...and better. Transparent, ultra stable and mild. The perfect night with the Milky Way bright down to the horizon.

I started out in summer  by looking at the swathe of sky running N/S from the Lagoon, up to the Trifid, past the Sagittarius Star Cloud and on up to the Swan and the Eagle. All these objects were visible and the stars were powdery small and tight. There's a wonderful and enormous vee-shaped dust feature south of the Sag Star Cloud which was really distinctive, far more so than usual. It appears in this image in which north is on the left. 

I tried to catch the emission nebula and failed, but the dust feature was really exciting to see so nicely. As for M24, the star cloud, it left me wondering what could possibly be cometary about it! This part of the southern MW around the galactic centre never fails to provide a buzz.

I then swung over to M31 which I love in bins. The transparency made it very broad, as it was naked eye as well. Trying to tease out the extremities was fun and I love seeing it framed with some space around it. It's so eerie this way. Both satellites were easy and allow you to estimate how much of the photographic galaxy detail you can pick up.

Dropping south to a fairly low elevation M33 showed brightly (by M33 standards...) and revealed a hint of spiral in that it wasn't round but distincly patchy and irregular.

I then had a kip in the warm room and slept till Tom banged on the door and said it was getting light. I went into the scope room to close things down and blow me, there was Orion well up and looking splendid! Eek, winter! I couldn't resist a cruise down the Sword which, despite the brightening sky, was as wonderful as when we left it in the spring.

A good night.

Olly

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Great report! Strolling through the skies with bins is such a great pastime. Did you have a go at finding comet Jacgues yet? Very nice in my 15x70s, better in the wide-field scope (22T4 + 80mm APM)

[Stargazer33]

Nice report, sounds like a very good night!

[PhotoGav]

Beautiful report Olly of what sounds like a very relaxing cruise through space!

I had the same moment with Orion when I was roused from the sofa by my alarm at 04:40 to go out and shut down the rig. Through bleary eyes I first noticed The Pleiades quite high in the sky, which has only been peeking over the house tops for me recently. I moved south east to see the head of Taurus. I then began to smile when I realised that Orion was gazing back at me too, appearing to wave as long lost friends do when they approach from afar. It was chilly enough to be a winter night too... Not long till all of that!

[ollypenrice]

Great report! Strolling through the skies with bins is such a great pastime. Did you have a go at finding comet Jacgues yet? Very nice in my 15x70s, better in the wide-field scope (22T4 + 80mm APM)

Like an idiot I totally forgot about Jaques. I haven't seen it yet. I need to write myself a note, I think, because that's about the tenth time I've forgotten...

Olly

[Brave Sir Robin]

Nice report!

[szymon]

A very good read, many thanks!

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