Uhc filter - targets?

[craigfoot]

Hi

So I'm now the owner of a uhc filter thanks to a birthday present. . .

So what would be the best targets for observing using this at the moment?

Cheers

Craig

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

[pipnina]

This site is very helpful: http://www.prairieastronomyclub.org/resources/by-dave-knisely/filter-performance-comparisons-for-some-common-nebulae/

Other than that, the filter IS yours so you can try it on anything and discover what it does/doesn't work on yourself!

    ~pip

EDIT: Just thought that last sentence made me sound mean or something, was not the intention!

[Stu]

Don't worry Pip, it sounded fine

I can't compete with the depth of information in that link, but many emission nebulae respond well to a UHC filter. Try M27, M57 and M42 when it rises a bit earlier. Plenty of others too such as the Blue Snowball

[Piero]

Hi Craig,

If you have ST pocket star atlas (or stellarium or carte du ciel .. ), you can see many nebulae. You could try your filter on both extended and planetary nebulae which are within the limits of your telescope and sky. 

As suggested M27 and M42 are nice targets with an UHC, particularly M42 in my opinion. I also like my OIII on this target, but the UHC shows the extension of this object very nicely. M8 and M20 are also nice with an UHC filter. I don't know whether you can see them from your location, but possibly you can still observe them in the early evening near the horizon at South-West. If your sky is sufficiently dark, you could give a try to the Pacman nebula (NGC281). This is not an easy target generally, but you could spot some nebulosity around the main star. The same for the Heart and Soul Nebulae.

NGC7000, the North America nebula is a nice target for a UHC filter, and is right at the zenith in the evening. You will need a decent sky though. You might also want to try the Veil nebula. This is a lovely target for an OIII filter, but I read of people who saw it with an UHC filter.

Among planetary nebulae, you could try  NGC 6543 (the Cat's eye), NGC6210 (the turtle), NGC7662 (the blue snowball).. 

Seriously, your curiosity, telescope and most importantly the sky are your limits! 

Have fun! 

Piero

[Dave In Vermont]

There are several variants of UHC-Filters out there, differing by their cut-off points of the spectra. It's best to find out by looking through them and coming to your own conclusions of what the one you have does to your views. Or, if you're a certifiable filter-nut like me, what each of your's does for the views.

Dave