Planetary Nebula's To Look For

[Akyra]

Probably most of you have already read July's (maybe even Augusts already?!) copy of AstronomyNow, well I have only just today finished reading it cover to cover. Anywhoo, there is a section called Focus which does exactly what it says on the tin, it centres its attention on a topic each issue. July's is Planetary Nebular. There are a few pages desribing their origins and how they were created, etc. Then there is a section titled Observing Planetary Nebula which tells you a bit of information about filters, etc. that help to view them, it also explains how filters work. Then there is a list of "12 Favourite Planetary Nebula" with pictures, the equipment used to produce the images, information and the RA/Dec values.

When the weather turns better I hope to go through this list and spot them all! Some look absolutely amazing, I know that they will not look like the images, but the descriptions say there is much detail available through pure visual work too.

Would you guys (who dont have a copy) like me to type up the listing and see how many you can find?

[Kaptain Klevtsov]

The downside with these PN doodahs is that they are nearly all tiny little things. The M27 & M57 ones are huge in comparison so be aware that they will take some finding.

I'd be interested in a list of their Messier, NGC or IC numbers as I can look them up in Starry Night and see how itsy bitsy they are.

Kaptain Klevtsov

[Akyra]

1 - The Dumbbell Nebula [M27]

2 - Cat's Eye Nebula [NGS 6543]

3 - The Saturn Nebula [NGS 7009]

4 - The Ring Nebula [M57]

5 - The Eskimo Nebula [NGC 2392]

6 - IC 1295

7 - The Skull Nebula [NGC 246]

8 - NGC 2438

9 - Minkowski 1-79

10 - Jones 1

11 - The Medusa Nebula [Abell 21]

12 - The Helix Nebula [NGC 7293]

All descriptions of above PN's come with size's too, measured in arcseconds. Want those details too?

[Kaptain Klevtsov]

Thanks Akyra. I'll add these to my list of possibles.

Kaptain Klevtsov

[Akyra]

The images are breathtaking, would love to see some of you guys capture these!

[Astroman]

These are all middling targets in an 8". Haven't tried them in a 6", but I may with the F/9.5 when it clears. All of them are better with a UHC filter, except Abel 21.

A synopsis:

1-Everyone's seen-it's spectacular and the closest PN to us.

2-Smaller than expected, but long, slow observation reveals more detail.

3-Very small and bright. The brightness makes it challenging to see the "rings", but a filter helps.

4-Yeah, yeah.

5-Faint, small. Find the out-of-round shape first, then look for contrast differences.

6-Extremely diffuse against rich star field. Good luck with this one.

7-Listed at mv=8.5, I've skipped over this one repeatedly in search of. Easy to mistake it for the nearby galaxy Ngc 255.

8-Good one! Stuck inside/in front of M46.

9-AKA PK-93+2.1. Rectangular shaped, but extremely faint.

10-UHC a must. mv=12.6 good luck, it's just the outside edges of a ring, not connected.

11-Maybe see it in HA, but I doubt it.

12-Helix is great! UHC brings lots of detail.

All of these are photogenic, but mostly small, so be prepared. Planetary Nebulae are a pet project of mine, but I lack aperture for any real study. Maybe once the 16" is up I'll give it a go. You need lots of aperture and magnification to observe them, which means a tracking mount.

[Akyra]

The mag recommends O III, H-b and H-a filters. Probably a bit pricey to try and own them all though!

[Astroman]

A UHC is O III and H-b, so that's a good one. Trust me! 8)

[Andrew]

Hi Akyra,

These are also worth a look:

M76 – The little dumbbell

M97 – The owl nebula

NGC7662 – The blue snowball nebula

NGC6826 – The blinking planetary

[Astroman]

Good choices there too, Andrew. The blue snowball is great, and the blinking nebby tests your averted vision.

[Akyra]

With all the imagers now producing quality results, Stargazer's needs its own catalogue system with multiple examples from members. Admins?