Can find M33 much easier now with bins

[kirkster501]

Even with a slight light pollution I can get the 15x70 bins on it now straight off.  Took much practise but pleased with myself

Also located the Coathanger last night and enjoyed that too and M27 with the same bins.

All whilst the imaging rig was grabbing NA Nebula ;-)

[VigdisVZ]

Yeah, same here, I can usually pick out M31 within seconds now with bins, even in LP. Practice makes perfect.

Still struggle to find Hercules in good conditions however... :/

[Paul M]

That's good going on M33!

I remember once considering M31 to be an easy naked eye target! Had darker skies and younger eyes then

Never managed M33 in years of trying until I eventually found it with the 10 x 50's from a dark sky site earlier this year.

It felt like a real achievement.

[John]

M33 can be a real challenge if there is any light pollution about. M31 is usually doable even with a full moon in the sky though it looks much better without. I can do that one with the naked eye on a decent night.

M101 in Ursa Major is my real bugbear and I seem to struggle to see it even with my 12" scope.

[Daniel-K]

both of these eluded me till I went to a dark site and last time round boy was I treated to a fantastic sight.probaly the best view of a galaxy I have ever seen. M101's spiral arms with the HA regions just glowing in the FOV.something that's going to stick with me for a life time.

[cotterless45]

They've got low surface brightness. Too much mag and you look right through them. Best seen from dark sites, M33 can show it's spiral arms, several bright areas , but no visible bright core,

Nick.

[Paul73]

Same here. Not a sausage with the biggish Dob. But turn the Binos on it and there it is!

Even then, it doesn't exactly jump out at you.

Paul

[Stu]

Yep, faint glow in the binos at a dark site. I managed M101 and 33 last week. Would live to see them in a big aperture at a dark site though.... Lucky boy Dan, v jealous

[swamp thing]

Nice one Steve, you should have tried for the NA neb in your bins whilst you were imaging it

M101 is simply incredible if your skies are dark enough, it doesn't require large aperture (its already big) just the good contrast afforded by a nice dark sky.

[kirkster501]

Never seen M101 visually at all no matter what scope and even in dark skies.  Maybe they need to be darker.  

[Special K]

M33 too difficult from home, though I haven't tried the bins on it since I spotted it in the dark last month. Worth a try again just in case my eyes now understand what it looks like. As Nick mentioned, its easy to miss it with higher magnifications, and I think that was part of the issue not seeing it with the telescope. A gentle giant!

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Practice makes perfect! Novices sometime wonder at observing reports of more experienced observers, but they forget many of us started YEARS ago. In my case that's 35 years ago, so I have had a lot of practice in finding faint fuzzies.