Ciaran Meier

Availed of an unexpected clear spell this evening to get out with the Stellar II 15x70 bins. As there's a youthful moon hanging around decided to tour a collection of nice wide doubles. Gemini 18 Gem. 4.1m 8.0m. Seperation: 112.6" STT83. A C 7.2m 7.8m Sep: 122.5" STF1088. A C 7.4m 8.7m Sep: 112.0" STTA80. Really nice multiple system. STF1007. A D 7.4m 7.7m Sep: 67.7" STTA75. 7.7m 8.8m Sep: 46.9" Auriga ES576. A C 8.1m 8.9m Sep: 42.5" STTA63. 6.5m 7.7m Sep: 76.0" Leo Regulus. A B 1.4m 8.2m Sep: 175.2" Tau Leo. A B 5.1m 7.5m Sep: 89.4" Was really great fun spending a few hours tracking these down in the binoculars. STTA80 was the highlight, a pleasing compact triangle of stars in orbital association. What more could you want ? 😀 Ciaran.

Thanks for the helpful hints chaps. I did suspect that there was little to be done about the LP. F15rules mentioned double stars and as it happens I'm just back in after a few hours with my 15×70's tracking a few down. Look after yourselves Ciaran.

Cheers. Yep, I had a feeling it was a long shot. Aperture really is the only answer.

Hello folks Been observing from home lately given current curtailments. LP eliminates all but the brightest stars and make DSO hunting a tad tricky. Has anyone any experience on boosting contrast on these objects. I know there's no miracle fix for this but it would be nice to tease out a bit more detail if possible. Current setup: 8 inch F6 newt. 6mm EP. 1mm exit pupil. x200 12mm EP. 2mm exit pupil. X100 25mm EP. 4.2mm exit pupil. X48 Any advice much appreciated. Ciaran.

So that's what it's called. Snapped a phone photo last night of the same lunar region. Looked incredable in the 6mm EP with the interplay of shadow and the really prominent central peaks. Photo taken using handheld smartphone with 12mm EP on 8" F6 newt. Ciaran.

Scope operating well, managed a few nice doubles in Gemini then clouds rolled in. Met Office online forecast gave, and is still giving clear skies. BBC online forecast predicted a cloudy sky. I'd say currently 80% cloud cover here. Usually the Met forecast is quite accurate, but sadly not so in this case. Oh well, maybe tomorrow......

Mirror re-installed and rough collimation. If it can split a close double I'll leave as is. Clearing up nicely here in Belfast.

Popped the primary mirror from my 8" newt for a bit of a spring clean. Before and after shots. Looking forward to my "first light" hopefully later this evening.

Funny, I was thinking about one of these just a moment ago. Would it be correct to say that a reducer will lower the given magnification for a given EP. I was considering perhaps getting one as opposed to a longer focal length EP to slightly increase my FOV and possibly give me a more "contrasty" image. Kind of a negative Barlow effect. (Visual use only). Cheers Ciaran.

Just checked my obs to do list and next to the M86 entry I've made a note on "Markarians Chain" Is this it ?

Out with the 8" OOUK newt. Observing from Belfast so sky quality quite poor though at least cloud free. Had a go at tracking down a few of the brighter galaxies in Leo. It's a bit of a challenge as I'm actually aiming the scope up into an almost starless sky. M105, 9.4 mag. Used 52 Leo as the anchor star and hopped down. NGC3384, 9.9 mag wavered into view within the same FOV. Down slightly for M96, 9.3 mag. Over to the Triplet, Spotted M65, 9.3 mag and M66, 9.0 mag. No luck with NGC3628 at 9.8 mag. Up over the sickle for NGC2903 at 9.0 mag. Finished with a peak at the M81/M82 set. Used only the 25mm Vixen EP as further magnification completely washed out the image. Not much to report detail wise, all fairly nondescript smudges to be honest. But, really enjoyed the session, "mindfullness" I believe it's now known as. All the best folks. Ciaran.

Bright galaxy export from DSO Planner. Bright Galaxies

That's a crack'n looking scope there and a nice range of EP's too. Ciaran.

Nice report. I live close to Belfast City Airport and I must admit that I am enjoying the temporary relief from the constant buzz of aircraft. And yes, with a good atlas and a bit of skill there's plenty to be had from an orange urban sky. Keep well. Ciaran.

Yep. I've my two boys at home now, 8 and 11. Challenging would be an understatement. You certainly have my sympathy. All the best to you and your wife. Ciaran.

Watched a movie with the family after dinner (Herbie, on the new Disney Channel, FYI 😀) and popped out with the 15x70's for a quick scan when it ended. Turned into a great two hour session. Very poor seeing from my backyard in Belfast but that doesn't stop me !! Beehive first, not visible to the naked eye for me but lovely in the bins. Down to M48, an OC in Hydra which resolved into stars with averted vision. Then using Canis Minor as a jump off headed over to OC NGC2264, the Christmas Tree then further down to OC NGC 2244 a nice compact OC. That area of the sky is lovely to sweep with the bins even from a city location. Over to Leo and just about convinced myself that M66 was spotted at mag 9.0. 36 Leo was a nice wide double, 3.5m and 6.0m @ 334" separation. 84 Leo, another nice wide double @ 90" separation. Dropped down to Sextans for a go at C35, a galaxy at 8.6m. Brighter than M66 but was lost in the city glare. Must have spent thirty minutes on this hunt. Ah, it's great to lose a few hours in the stars Ciaran.

Hi Robby I'm Observing mostly from my back yard here in Belfast and as you mentioned, even the Beehive can be tricky to find. I have the OOUK 8" newt and its a great scope. Seems to be well built and can handle a bit of rough handling (non intentionally of course !!) All the best Ciaran.

Agreed 😀.

Well said !!!

Really nice.

Hi Mark, Yep, some weird names out there. I recently discovered the "Klingon Battle Cruiser " asterism NGC 1662 in Orion. Enjoyed reading your report. Ciaran.

Love it. I'm not into imaging at all and I've no technical appreciation of what's required to capture Images like this. It's the detail that I look for, the nature of the spiral arms and the starburst regions throughout the galaxy, etc. Colour bias and such things I would least notice, and probably not at all unless mentioned. Great shot.

Hiking, camping and astronomy: Sorted.

Galaxy (smudge) hunting is pretty useless from here in Belfast too. But you are right, it dosn't really matter. The satisfaction is with just locating that faint smudge from an urban area under very poor seeing. All the best. Ciaran. Have just added M104 to my list. DSO Planner gives 7.9 mag so doable from home. Cheers.

I'll stick with the cold till my hands don't work, were're a mad bunch !