What next after Saturn?

[Space Cadet USA]

Everyone likes to look at Saturn, it is the one astronomical object which is guaranteed to impress and excite the casual viewer. If friends or relations are over and I am outside observing then the wife will sometimes bring them out for a look. If Saturn is visible that is always the first object I show them, most people get a big kick out of seeing it.

The trouble is, what next?

The moon is an obvious choice if it is conveniently located that particular night but if not, what else? Again unless M42 is on show (and this probably means that winter is near so people are going to be far less likely to want to stand around outside while I get something 'lined up' in the scope) then what would you usually show someone who is not a keen observer?

A nice open cluster does the job for me if one is available but I would be interested in the thoughts of others....

[toml42]

jupiter + moons, particularly if there's a visible transit going on, or GRS is visible. people get quite excited to see things "in motion" like that, i find.

[swamp thing]

Hi

With your 5" frac In the next month or so.

Don't know what they're like from your latitude but how about the open clusters M6 & M7 in Scorpius.

There is also M11 & M26 in Scutum, and the open clusters M21, M23, M25 in Sagittarius.

Plus just sweeping your scope up and down M24 (the Sagittarius star cloud) is enough to impress anyone.

That should be enough open clusters to keep you and others amused.

Regards Steve

[barkis]

Double stars can impress, especially pairs with colour differences.

If arm youself with information about your intended targets, ie, separation in arc seconds, plus their real separations in light years, orbital periods if the are binary systems. Their temperatures usually related to their colours. If you sense reeling off this information is boring them, you can desist .

Ron.

[Space Cadet USA]

I find most vaguely technical information bores casual observers although telling them how many years the light has taken to reach their eyeball always seems to impress them far more than giving them a distance in light years...

[mag10]

Interesting question.

There are (many) nights when nothing "spectacular" is happening. But you can plan you invitations. I had a 5" Dob at the time, and the only night (so far) that I invited people for observing, the weather cooperated and I hit the jackpot: In one evening we had the Moon, Jupiter, Uranus, Andromeda's galaxy, the Pleiades, the Perseus double cluster, and at the end of the evening, we topped it all off with Orion's nebula. (mid to late November if I remember correctly).

The folks I had over (including two young children) are still talking about it!

But you're right. Sometimes there's not that much to show "civilians".

So what I do when friends drop in and there are no "fireworks" (or the clouds roll in), is tell them what I've seen, and try to convey the excitement I felt.

Sometimes that's about all you can do.

[Telrad]

Double stars can impress, especially pairs with colour differences.

If arm youself with information about your intended targets, ie, separation in arc seconds, plus their real separations in light years, orbital periods if the are binary systems. Their temperatures usually related to their colours. If you sense reeling off this information is boring them, you can desist .

Ron.

Completely agree Ron! Double Stars are wonderful. IMO, a pretty double in a small scope is lovelier than a faint smudge of a galaxy in a giant light bucket..

[vegaandarctures]

m51 is a really interesting one to go for its my favorite dso.