josefk

As everyone else has remarked absolutely arctic conditions last night - painfully cold extremities by the end. I'm still trying to grab as much of Mars as possible and spent about an hour there last night. I think it may have been my best observation of subtle detail last night (as opposed obvious darker detail like Syrtis Major). Binoviewing at 167x and mono viewing at 250x both gave something up. I'm never quite sure if i've seen the northern ice cap though or if its just brightness on the limb but last night i came closer than ever to feeling like i saw this specifically/properly. Clear split between a brighter northern hemisphere versus a subtly shaded southern hemisphere. Around Orion i went back to M78 and NGC 2071 that i had been looking at on Sunday evening. I wanted to compare observations using different kit but i found these somehow less observable than the night before even though i was using more aperture (though probably less exit pupil). The planetary nebula NGC 2022 in Orion was also really difficult and took ages to fully nail down (O-III wasn't really helping) - possibly because there was a very high thin haze coming across from the east that i only really noticed when i looked up. Swinging round away from the cloud M81 and M82 were excellent. Variation in the distribution of brightness in both and real "mottling" in M81. I added NGC 3077 (a small faint spiral galaxy) just a degree or so away from M81 and also Struve 1387 just off the corner of M81. This double star pair isn't close at 9" but it's subtle (Mag 10.x) and i was really happy to pick this up as it was unplanned and unlooked for. Swinging back round to Orion and the Trapezium i observed "E" for the first time but couldn't see "F". i didn't actually know where these should be and wanted to try and fully identify them before checking. Unfortunately cloud again was coming over from the East and stopped play. Probably just before frostbite set in!

I'm super jealous! ENJOY!

Unfortunately milky cloud stopped play at 23:00. Absolutely arctic temps though so maybe not too bad a thing...

No i use black and white index cards. White index cards for double star "plots", black index cards for everything else. On the black index cards I use white pens under stars and for planets to give a bit of luminosity and add coloured pencil over the top for star colour or planetary detail - all very scientific :-). One drawback with black card and putting white pen under for example Mars is that the paper "loads up" with pen/pencil so there is a limited window of opportunity to get down on paper an accurate representation/capture of how you saw something (doesn't apply to something simple like above). If I lose it (over work it) i find i can't get it back (not even with an eraser) and have to start again. Obviously for subtle things like planetary features that is a bit tricky. The advantage of index cards is that I need only keep the ones I'm happy with (i.e. are somehow a fair capture of the observation). At the EP i use graph paper on a small clip board and just black pen "plots" of everything (including contour lines for want of a better description for nebulosity and its extent) and text notes. Very scruffy.

Thanks for the kind words - i'm lucky with semi-rural darkness here i think and last night was really nice and dark - it's a pity the cloud rolled in so early because i felt like it could have been quite a productive session in that South Easterly direction. Its promising in CO for tonight so fingers crossed. School night be damned!

https://stargazerslounge.com/topic/405169-mars62-tauri-plus-m78bu559/ Nothing to get too excited about - more "for the record"...

More "aides-memoire" than sketches per se but here are two "sketches" from the 15th January. A view of Mars (upper right) with 62 Tauri/Struve 534 (centre and close up). The yellow and blue of Struve 534 was possibly not quite as strong as this sketch infers. And M78 - Orion nebulosity illuminated by HD 290862 / HD 38563 (Burnham 559) with NGC 2071. I've seen the two brighter stars of BU559 and M78 together described as "Casper's Ghost". I think that is probably a bit strong. It is noticeably more prominent than NGC 2071 as per the breakout view of them.

Short but very enjoyable hour between clouds early evening last night. It's a shame it did cloud over because sky conditions appeared to be lovely at the low magnifications i was using. Two 1-degree FOVs at 70x observed and sketched: Firstly M78; the small smudge of nebulosity east of Alnitak. The Orion nebulosity that is M78 is illuminated by the multiple star system Burnham 559. Last night i observed the obvious AC components but i gather there is a fainter and tighter "B" component that i should (or at least think i should) be able to see with more scope power. In this same field of view was a smaller and subtler smudge of nebulosity in NGC 2071. Secondly Mars and 62 Tauri (Struve 534) together. I enjoyed this perspective a couple of weeks ago but last night was slightly better. Last night there was a hint of yellow in the primary and a hint of blue in the secondary of 62 Tauri and with the salmon pink of Mars in the same view it was quite a nice arrangement (and made a nice sketch). Cheers

You've 100% nailed it - absolute conviction required (and i wait for my partner to go out so i can use the big kitchen knives). 😇

I'm really enjoying this shadow foam stuff now i've gotten to grips with how to cut it relatively neatly - here used for an accessory case. My first efforts looked like small mice had nibbled the foam - I've realised the secret is use a big broad bladed knife (for straight cuts at least).

...i am that man! 😂

Well if it's not one thing it's another - 1st clear night since the 2nd January and yet 25mph winds. I did foolishly try a little scope but even at 30x and mounted no more than 3-foot off the ground it was vibrating too much so reverted to mounted binoculars at 15x. I must have been subconsciously influenced by the talk of OB associations above. Collinder 70 was pretty as expected in a 4.5 degrees FOV but i made no attempt to distinguish Cr70 stars from the busy (and lovely) star field here. The whole Orion area including M42 below looks lovely at any magnification including just 15x. Collinder 65 - like Cr70 - taking advantage of the big FOV but no attempt to pick it out from the star field in detail. Also the smaller open clusters Collinder 69 and Caldwell 50 (no nebulosity detected here even at this big exit pupil), then NGC 2244 (Herschel VII-2), NGC 2232 (VIII-25), NGC 1817 (VII-4), and NGC 1807 (h348). It was good to be out in general (and to observe a few more Herschels definitely) but there was no peace and quiet in it in this stiff breeze so i would be hard pressed to say it was an enjoyable session exactly. Fingers crossed for something in the next few nights.

Hi @bosun21 you may want to disregard my message above - you won't be using a diagonal of course so the measurement i get is irrelevant. A powermate after the diagonal and before the eyepiece is more or less parfocal. Means i have no clue what it would do for you in your situation. Sorry.

I think (and I can make careful checks for you if you like) that the 2" 2x TV powermate moves the focus point out by ~65mm i.e. it is making a circa -65mm contribution to the light path when used before the diagonal. This is "a bad thing" for my usage but maybe useful for you. Cheers

You have my sympathy - i feel your pain and admire your stoicism!

They sound like long odds - i'm not sure i would have the patience. Is there an upside re. the darkness of your skies on those precious ~20 nights?

What a lovely gesture. Bravo @mikeDnight 👏🏼

Fascinating read this morning so thanks for the links to those articles @markse68. I do love the transfer of your sketches to globes @mikeDnight what a brilliant way to record and demonstrate the observation experience. Hats off to you!

Very nice. Unlike Steve I’ve failed to detect this (I think twice) this year visually. I’n reality i’m underpowered (don’t have enough aperture) for it so it is lovely to see your image of it this morning. 👍🏼

That sounds great @SuburbanMak - the dark sky stuff especially. I have north Norfolk about 90 mins away and i *i think* this would get me to Bortle 3 (or at least rural rather than semi rural) but i haven't made the effort yet with anything other than binoculars; i will this year. Per the tricky Messier I have a shortlist on sky safari pro of things with a "difficult" reputation (not only Messier objects) or targets i have already myself found difficult and failed to see at least once. I attempt a few on this list first on the darkest nights but only a few - one slight frustration is it it can become a series of failed observations even on the darkest nights so i don't flog it to death. I finally bagged M74 from this "dark nights" list in December but I found it very difficult from the spot i was at. Cheers

thanks @FLO. The 2" extender to enable me to insert a powermate before the diagonal (both mono and BV). While the focus point doesn't move much with a powermate inserted after the diagonal it was unexpected and a bit disappointing to find that it does move quite a bit (outwards) when inserted before the diagonal. It moved further than i've had spacers to accommodate till now and i really (only) want to use the PM before the diagonal to keep leverage forces low. The Tak 5LE because i was mightily impressed with with a Tak Abbe ortho earlier this week - the narrow FOV of the abbe was obvious but what is in that FOV was "wowser". Really tiny perfect pinprick stars. I'm hoping for more of the same with this LE and at a slightly more generous AFOV.

In the bird spotting world we keep lists for everything - life lists but also county lists, country lists, and crucially yearly lists. I appreciate astronomy is a bit more of a long game but after consolidating birding lists for 2022 over the holiday period I took a look at my astro observations in a similar way and i wondered if it would be fun to start a post along these lines? I always enjoy what everyone posts in the “what did you see tonight?” forum. In 2022 I enjoyed: 49 nights (or mornings) of observing activity (counting these triggered by another thread today on clear nights) 306 unique objects observed ~100 sketches ~500 observations in sum (it’s a bit subjective how i count this) Top five 2022 highlights: The parade of five planets in a single sweep of the bins on the 25th June and again 28th June. Just awesome in the quiet early morning on the 25th and i had the pleasure of sharing them again with an old gent biker on the Bilbao ferry the morning of the 28th (he was on deck at 04:00 having a smoke - even though he was in his sixties he had never knowingly seen the planets before and sharing the bins view with him seamed to make quite a deep impression. His ‘wow” reaction at Jupiter in particular made a big impression on me). Orion region through more aperture and using more elaborate kit than i’ve had use of before so really getting repeatedly knocked off my observing stool by the endless detail available in this dramatic area. Jupiter in dawn blue light early August. For a tiny fraction of a second (out of a total of 45 minutes) it looked like a slice of pristine marble worktop. A Europa shadow transit was a bonus. The Lunar/Mars occultation - i enjoyed this immensely (far more than i expected). Solar system clockwork indeed. Getting the habit of picking out super tiny nearly stellar PNe at inappropriately low magnification. This "sport" tickles me no end. More fun than doubles (possibly)! 2023 plans: Sketch 90% of my observations (not including open clusters) Finish the Astro League double star programme (almost certain) Finish the Astro League PNe programme (probable) Get to 50% of the Herschel 400 list (hopeful) Anyway please share your own turn of the year reflections here if you wish. Happy New Year all. Joe

Post retirement (a long way off yet unfortunately) 6 months a year spent down in the Iberian Peninsula and/or Morrocco (sp. the Atlas mountains) would tick a lot of boxes...

...Just 49 nights for me in 2022 (13%). i felt like i was consistently exploiting the clear nights but obviously not. Must try harder 2023 to keep up with you guys! i enjoyed 3x "all nighters" (1 per Spring, Summer, Autumn). I still need to do a winter one - maybe starting with Mars and finishing with C/2022 E3 (ZTF). January hasn't started well and the outlook doesn't look promising 😞

i wonder if that an effect of the bino bandit Rob? i use a hood with my binoviewer and when doing so i'm definitely conscious of condensation needing more active management.