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"Hagrid's Dragon " and a lovely morning.


cotterless45

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The early hours this morning brought one of the darkest skies this year, not a breeze and a bit of dew. Capella was overhead, most striking was Cassiopeia losing it's shape and appearing as a spangly buggy.

A brilliant Jupiter headed up Leo , with Gemini holding hands, clear down to the feet at naked eye M35. Orion was high in the south east, the stars to this arm and bow being clear. Clear down to Lepus and Sirius. Ursa Major was stood on it's tail and slowly rising in the north.

The very fine cluster NGC 2301 in Monoceros is rightly named "Hagrid's Dragon". Three finely beaded strands shine out , really lovely against Darkish sky.

M50 is a bulbous cluster , like a pecking hen !

Then over to

Avery's island NGC 2353 showing one horseshoe inside another. Then over to the Christmas tree of NGC 2264, the whole scene is quite neat. Over to Orion and

Hind's Crimson Star, just get it out of focus to get a lovely deep colour. Across to Puppis and

M47 absolutely brilliant sparkle here, compare to the nearby delicate M46. Then the bright M41 in Canis Major , a very noticeable striking red star to the centre. Up to

Gemini and the brilliant chains of M35, a small Perseus like group separates. this from it's faint small companion NGC 2158. The group is 100 million years old.

NGC 2266 provides a Rubik's cube with a densely packed arch of star clouds to one side. NGC 2355 is faint, but noteable at one billion years old.

Admiring Jupiter at x200, I pressed on to the slanted bright streak of NGC 2903 at the head of Leo.

Gemini had risen to a darker area and it was great to catch ,averted , NGC 2419 at the end of a bright arc. This is the globular galactic wanderer, well outside the halo of the Milky Way. This was glowing through Perseus , showing the bright galaxy NGC 1023 caught in a chain of stars.

By then the crescent Moon arrived , showing some crisp details on the terminator, hurrah !

Thanks for wading through this, try and see The dragon , it's a gem of a cluster.

I was hoping to share the views of some extraordinary targets at PSP , but it washed out. All of this was on view at 6am, it's worth a stroll out, before the weather closes in , again.

Clear skies !

Nick.

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Wonderful report Nick, you always capture so much and deliver at the pace of a horse racing commentator in the final furlong ;-) It looked stunning out of my bedroom window at 4am, my first sight of Orion and a brilliant Jupiter. Couldn't get out - but your commentary really makes up for it!

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Wonderful report Nick, you always capture so much and deliver at the pace of a horse racing commentator in the final furlong ;-) it!

Nick

Like wot Jake says!!

Cracking report. You must observe at the same breakneck speed to get all of these in.

I got out about 05:30. First time in months a that time in the morning. The winter sky is suddenly here! I was like a kid in a sweet shop.

Paul

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