Monday August 15: Clear skies over Groningen

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

My first session back in Groningen was short, but quite interesting. The sky was clear, but the moon was a pain. Furthermore, my RA controller had packed in, so I was fully manual.

After trying to get NGC 5466 in Bootes, I settled for M3 and M13 as starter objects. Nice in the C8, well resolved.

I checked up on NGC 6781, found just a few days ago with Olly's 20" dob. It was surprisingly easy in the C8 using either 22 or 14mm with UHC filters. 14mm was best.

Close by I found NGC 6804, just west and a bit south of Altair. Smaller and fainter than NGC 6781, it was still readily visible using the 14mm and UHC filter. Nearby NGC 6803 proved a bridge too far. It is actually brighter than NGC 6804, but I later found it is only 5"x5" so much smaller than I expected. I may have overlooked it as a star.

I then trundled past M27, which is always a beauty, especially with the UHC filter.

NGC 6885 (Caldwell 37) was last, best seen with the 40mm as a roughly circular sprinkling of stars.

Clouds rolled in I ended the session. Two new objects is still a nice result.