Nicola Fletcher

Great report and some excellent targets I must try to find. Thank you!

I was absolutely chuffed to see it - I think it was just the exceptionally clear conditions as I almost always observe from the same site and have never seen anything like that before! Now that the clouds have settled in for another few days, I'm going to finish some sketches I started at the telescope (My new year's resolution - I'll post anything presentable although I don't hold out much hope )

Thank you so much Dave - I read about your enforced confinement on your other post, so I'm really glad you are on the mend and hope yourself and Trinity have some clear nights in January!

I got a copy of the Pocket Sky Atlas directly from Sky and Telescope (https://shopatsky.com/products/pocket-sky-atlas-second-edition). It arrived about a week ago - delivery was reasonably fast. Including postage and customs it cost about €45 which I think is worth it for such a great little atlas!

Great report and a really entertaining read 😊 Your description of M1 sounds very like my first time seeing it last night with my 4” refractor. I also thought the double cluster was incredible last night!

Thanks a lot @Stu, that’s really helpful. I’ll look into getting a filter - luckily Santa also brought me a FLO voucher so that’ll be spent soon! I’ll try a bit more magnification on M36, 37 and 38 next time - I didn’t really spend enough time trying to see them properly. Really appreciate your advice! Shame about the clouds @Captain Magenta - with luck we will have more clear nights soon. That 105mm LZOS sounds fantastic, and West Cork will have just the skies for it!

Ok, will do. Thank you!

Fantastic report Magnus - I think we were all starved for a night out!! I have no idea how you managed without socks - I had two pairs, then a pair of Smartwool socks and North Face snow boots, and was still cold Really enjoyed your description of the Pup - brilliant to see it at last.

Does anyone know if there is any way to be sent an alert with the times of the live coverage? I keep missing them!

I completely agree - often when I look out at the clouds and mist, I think of that telling section in TLAO when discussing the Whirlpool Galaxy that was discovered by Lord Rosse - something about Ireland not having the most ideal weather for stargazing! A good night makes it all worth it though. Thank you for your kind comments too, which are very much appreciated!

Like others who have written great reports from last night and the night of the 4th, I also had absolutely fantastic skies for two nights which got 2022 off to a great start. I observe in my back garden, with Bortle 4 skies and LP only observable to the north, towards Dublin. On both nights, I used my Starwave 102 ED-R mounted on a SW AZ-EQ5 and used the opportunity to try out my Christmas present, a 24mm Panoptic, which I used almost exclusively, with just a few targets observed with a Baader MKIV 8-24mm Zoom. There were a few intermittent clouds on the night of 4th, but last night the sky was crystal clear, with very good to excellent seeing. I find transparency more difficult to evaluate, as I always have light pollution towards Ursa Minor, but the Zenith was particularly good last night with more stars visible than I have seen in a long time. On 4th, I started at 6pm, with Auriga my first target. I have never tried to observe the North America Nebula (NGC7000) before, but Deneb was ideally placed from my observing site. I couldn't see any evidence of the nebula and spent some time panning around with the Panoptic, but no luck. I know this can be a challenging target, and I didn't use a filter - perhaps this would have helped. I next moved on to M1 - another first for me. The Crab Nebula was quite dim, but very obvious, and spending a bit of time observing it I could see more of the extent of the nebulosity. I next moved to M42 as the sky was clearer to the south east, and spent some time observing M42, M43 and NGC1981, which never fail to impress. M35 (open cluster in Gemini) was yet another first and I spent a long time looking at the jewel-like cluster which I think suited the Panoptic very well. I finished up with M81 and M82 (Bode's twin galaxies) which, despite the small size of my telescope, are two of my favourite targets and I love teasing out the differences in shape between these two galaxies. Given the extremely cold conditions, especially when the wind picked up, I finished up at 9.30pm. The night of 5th was even better - I did not expect that after the great evening's observing the previous night, given the terrible weather we have had since December. No clouds at all, excellent seeing and it didn't feel quite as cold as the previous night. I kicked off at 5pm, viewing the moon through 10 x 50 Olympus binoculars, and then through the Starwave. According to Clear Outside, the moon was at 12% and it was a really great sight through both the binoculars and scope. Given the improved weather, I next had another try at NGC7000, and I thought I could see faint hints of nebulosity, but honestly that could have been my imagination! My next targets were M31 and M32 - both galaxies were very obvious through the Panoptic and the bright core and extent of the Andromeda galaxy became more obvious the longer I observed it. I then moved to M33 - the Triangulum galaxy. Obviously, through a 4", few details were visible but it was a pleasing sight and one I have not seen before. NGC869 and 844, the double cluster in Perseus, was the highlight of the evening for me - perfection through the Panoptic and it was difficult to drag myself away. I next moved to the Pleiades (M43), and spent a long time looking at this open cluster, where I could see obvious nebulosity around several stars including Merope - I have not seen nebulosity that clearly before. I next moved to M36, a small but beautiful open cluster - I think M37 and 38 didn't fit in the field of view of the Panoptic but I moved on as both myself and my kit were starting to freeze! I finished that perfect evening with M42, which was even more beautiful than usual and I could have spent much longer observing it. I was so glad I had taken the time to put together observing lists - I saw several objects for the first time and really made the most of both evenings. I have been terrible until now for setting up, observing a few targets over and over again, and then running inside when the nights got too cold. Last night in particular was, I think, one of the best observing nights I have ever had and I can heartily recommend the 24mm Panoptic which I am very grateful to SGL members for recommending!

Fantastic - I thoroughly enjoyed reading your report and the thrill of the hunt! Congratulations on seeing the Horsehead - if only my 4" refractor was up to the challenge...!

Welcome back! I’m very jealous of your dob - looking forward to your observing reports!

Great photos, thank you for sharing them. The moon was a wonderful sight last night. I’m very glad you managed to get into your car!

What a great photo - thank you for posting it! I’ve been popping outside on semi-clear nights, that aren’t clear enough to justify setting up a scope, with my new binoculars and I didn’t quite believe the extent of Andromeda that my eyes were telling me is there. This has properly convinced me that it it really is that big!

It’s been really nice reading everybody’s stories - thank you for resurrecting this great thread! 30 years ago, when I was 12, my parents moved to a small farm in the Wicklow mountains in Ireland. The night sky was incredible (and still is), so many stars it was overwhelming. About 10 years later, my uncle bought a 10” Meade LX200 from a retired university professor and I couldn’t believe anyone could own something so amazing. A few years after that, I asked him if I could borrow the telescope and he said I could, as long as I promised never to give it back! It turned out, it was too big for him and so I brought it to Wicklow. It was fantastic to own it although I didn’t have a clue what I was doing and it was far too big for me. I eventually got a 5” Mak and really enjoyed using that - I learned a lot and travelled many places with it.

What a beautiful image!

That sounds like good news- really hoping for a safe launch on Saturday! I’ll follow Mark McCaughrean now 😊

Weather doesn’t look much better on Saturday- still, better to postpone as they only get one chance at this!

I had this scope for about ten years and loved it - I still miss it! I bought a set of BST Starguiders and the Baader Hyperion Zoom - these were great and I use them in my refractors now so they were good for future telescopes too. I did find that the tripod was quite wobbly, but setting the telescope up on a lawn really helped with the shakiness. Apart from the eyepieces, I didn’t make any further upgrades to the setup. It was great fun to use and I found the optics great. I hope you enjoy it!

Welcome! I hope you get lots of enjoyment from SGL!

I'd also go for the Tak, but perhaps consider the FC76-DCU as suggested by Jeremy. It screws in half so can fit in the smallest travel bag, and I think is more portable if you ever want to fly with it. As @MalcolmM says, getting the FS60Q, and later the FC76 objective upgrade, is an option and would give you the flexibility of the FS60 plus the 76. When deliberating my options for a very portable setup, I read http://alpha-lyrae.co.uk/2017/03/12/takahashi-fc-76-dcu-review/ and his other reviews and this was what helped me make my final decision to go for the FC76-DCU. I don't regret it!

I immediately thought of the Matrix 😊 My little FC76-DCU brings a smile to my face whether I’m looking at it or through it - I can’t believe I own it still. Must think of a name now!

It’s an absolute picture - what a fabulous scope. Love the name too!