Dark Skies at the Lizard, Part One

[dick_dangerous]

Hi All,

Last year I went on a trip to Cornwall to West Penwith, with some very dark skies and lots of storms and cloud. Having visited the Lizard on a day trip, we decided this year to spend a week in the area, staying at Cadgwith. The contrast couldn't have been greater in terms of astronomy - out of the seven nights we were down there, a whopping five were cloud free. In fact by the end of Monday night I managed so much observing that I instead opted to spend some time with my wife, part of the reason for going on holiday in the first place.

The three nights I observed weren't without their challenges. If you've never been to Cadgwith then be warned - there is no such thing as flat space there! I managed to observe from the pub car park one night, but drove over to Kynance Cove and used the car park there the other two nights. It's very dark down there, but you do get a little bit of light from Penzance across Mount's Bay and from the lighthouse on Lizard Point. The bigger problem was the wind - in fact Saturday was almost unobservable it was blasting across so hard. However there was ample opportunity to probe space and by Monday I'd managed to get my 'scope properly collimated... So indulge me with part one!

18th April - Kynance Cove

Even after a seven hour car journey and with howling winds, I was up for a bit of observing from Kynance Cove. It was my birthday and only cloud would stop me. When I had trouble getting the car door open, I realised this wouldn't be a classic, but I duly set up under dark, clear skies, still just about able to stand. Even though the Milky Way is low in April I could just make it out going through Auriga as the wind threatened to tear my eyes out. I managed Jupiter in the 'scope, even though it shook like stink so I couldn't make any detail out. My next target was the Leo Triplet and I was rewarded by all three galaxies in the FoV with my 25mm lens. NGC3628 is invisible to my eyes from London, so this in itself was a reward. M51 was next, another that I can't see in London, and I could make out its fuzziness with its neighbouring galaxy also clearly there. Before my fingers fell off I took a look at M53 in Coma Berenices, a favourite globular, but the weather was so harsh I ended up scuttling back to Cadgwith. As it was fairly sheltered at base camp I had a quick look round with the binoculars - M44, M48, M67 and M81 were all looking good, but I went inside to the wood burner after that.

19th April - Cadgwith

The wind had died down by the following evening but having driven round the Helford River area I didn't feel like going back to Kynance. Thankfully, Cadgwith Cove Inn's tiny "Car Park" was unused so I set up and started hunting for sights. Turned out subsequently that my collimation was right off, but there was still plenty to see:

• Venus - Gibbous phase very apparent
• Jupiter - Bands and belts were there, with a little detail, but it wasn't great. I put it down to seeing, but it turned out to be collimation.
• Rosette Nebula - Even with the UHC in, I was unable to make out any nebulosity. However the cluster was sparkling away - I think it's getting too low now, so will have to wait for the winter for another crack.
• Leo Triplet - All present and correct, and very bright even though it was fairly early evening.
• Whirlpool Galaxy (M51) - Again, clearly visible, both M51 and its companion, with bright nuclei surrounded by a ghostly glowing disc of light.
• Sombrero Galaxy (M104) - Had a proper look at this after last year's tantalising glimpse from London. It shows some nice structure, resembling a fried egg seen edge on. I got a faint hint of the dust line through the middle too (?)
• Spindle Galaxy (NGC5866 - aka "M102") - I decided that this pretty galaxy in Draco would be "my" M102 - It resembled a rather pleasing oval in my eyepiece and is my 108th Messier, even if it's slightly controversial to include it in the catalogue...
• Ghost of Jupiter (NGC3242 - C59) - As I near completion of the Messiers, I'm turning my attention to the Caldwells, and this little planetary is one I've tried and failed to find before. It's rather small and looks very little like Jupiter, but relatively easy from this most southerly of locations in the UK.
• Leo 1 Galaxies (M105, NGC3384, M95, M96) - M105 is a wonderful elliptical galaxy that's even an easy find from London. Here in Cornwall it shone out brightly, with its near neighbour, NGC3384 showing up nearby. M95 and M96 always surprise me by not being closer together and are nowhere near as showy as the Leo Trio. Still, nice galaxies.
• M109 - This is a tricksy one - an angled spiral right next to Phad in Ursa Major. The trick is to get Phad just outside the field of view to make it easier to observe the galaxy, and it worked as before. Another lovely galaxy, and once found hard to miss, even with the bright star in the FoV.
• M81, M82 and NGC2976 - Bode's and the Cigar are especially lovely from a clear sky, with lots of detail visible in M82 that wouldn't be seen under London skies. I also managed to find the extra little NGC highlighted in TL@O.

And that's all for now... I thought I might have seen a noctilucent cloud, but after a bit of research I'm convinced it was high level cirrus (Apparently wouldn't be visible from below 50 degrees north in April - feel free to correct me though). Hope you enjoyed the read - sharing observations is one of the reasons why I think this forum is so good. Part two to follow tomorrow night! I've found 109 Messiers now after all...

DD

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Great report. I have many fond memories of that area. We often went to Cornwall on summer vacation, and stayed at a farm in Coverack. Kynance Cove was one of our favourite haunts. Didn't go in for any stargazing there, however.

[cotterless45]

Great report , there should be a Cornish Star Party !

Nick.

[dick_dangerous]

Thanks for the comments! Cornwall has some great observing spots, although the weather doesn't always play ball...

DD