Whilst beasting myself on a 10km run this evening in the freezing cold (couldn't feel my toes until after 5km!) I couldn't help but notice the lovely clear sky overhead. So, once suitably refreshed, out I ventured once more with my 6" SCT for a quick look up.

Clear it may have been, but steady it was not. Jupiter was a real challenge, even at modest power (x120) - dancing about all over the place, very hard to make out much on the disk other than the two most prominent cloud bands. It was a nicer view at x60, with all four Galilean moons visible (this was at about 2130UT).

Given the conditions, pushing the magnification up was obviously not the smart thing to do, so instead I took a look at a few open clusters - ideal for low power viewing, and much less susceptible to wobbly air. The Double Cluster in Perseus was magnificent - such a rich part of the sky anyway, and the two clusters close enough to both be in my field of view at x60. Great.

By this time, the combination of cold and sugar crash (from running) was taking its toll, so I went for just one more target - M37 in Auriga. Near the zenith, so well away from the murk, this was terrific. The more I looked, the more I could see - hints of many more fainter stars just beyond the limits of visibility, giving the impression of a cloud of light behind the brighter, resolved stars. Ended up staring at the thing for about 25 minutes, by which time I was in severe danger of falling over in a heap. So in I came!

So, when it's clear but the seeing's rubbish, open clusters are a great idea :smiley: