So who has stolen M33 ?

[Stevie816]

Hi Everyone

Last night was amazing. But where is M33 ? . I went back to it several times up to 3am. and could not find it. I saw many things I hadn't seen before down to mag12. And had a great night . But only a ghost where M33 should be. Is it really hard to see or do we have the crime of the century here ?

Steve.

[Bart]

No, its very hard to see. You will need dark skies and preferably it should be higher in the sky to minimise the atmosphere to look through. Took me ages. Its more pleasing in the finding than the observing. It really is only a ghost.

Bart

[David Smith]

What Bart said! Took me years to find it but that was mostly because I was using a 60mm frac from light polluted skies. Only when I moved to the 10" Revelation scope did I finally pick it out, but even then it is hardly spectacular.

[JamesF]

Sometimes it's just like that. I had similar problems with M107. It's very easy to know you're in exactly the right spot because of the nearby asterisms, but it's just not there to be seen. Best thing to do is to wait for another night when it's higher in the sky or the seeing is better.

James

[rory]

i managed the central core with 90mm refractor under moderate skies but it was after a long time observing with averted vision.direct vision gave me nothing at all . ive been told by members on the forum as well as in books that m33 is a object that really suffers with any light pollution.

[umadog]

It does really suffer, but if you're at a dark site and you take your time then it's a rewarding object.

[John]

M33's visibility varies quite a lot I find. On the best nights I have picked it's core up with 7x35 binoculars but most of the time it's more elusive and even my 10" newtonain shows little more than a faint, irregularly shaped patch of light.