Blue snowball

[Daff]

Had about 1 1/3 hours tonight. Spotted snowball, well used goto, moon was to bright for me to see the stars in the area to hop. Any who, that thing is strange, very strange. Every other object I've seen has been, oh, wow and ohhhh but that thing. I just felt uneasy, its a bit spooky, well was to me.

Well the goto has thus got me to be able to star hop to a couple of three. I can find the ring neb in my sleep.

Still puzzeled why that fuzzy blob spooked me and I swear it had a little blue/green colour. Am I going mad ??

Mike

[swamp thing]

Hi Mike

No your deffinitily not going mad, it's not called the blue snowball for no reason. It is blue and even appears that way to the visual astronomer. Some planetary nebulae ( like this one) are bright enough to stimulate the colour receptors in your eye, so can be seen in quite striking colours.

[Monty]

Its an amazing site and to my eyes appears almost teal in colour but that could be due to the atmosphere this time of year.

[Donkeiller]

Yup it is blue.

Blue in my 4" 'frac, 6" and 8" SCTs, so I reckon it is blue.

[Double Kick Drum]

Congrats on the Blue Snowball.

Nice object and I think most observers get a bit of colour.

Clear skies!

[Ganymede12]

A blue snowball hanging in space! Where is it? Would I be able to see it in my 70mm refractor?

(P.S, you know how a planet's gravity can throw a smaller planet out of a solar system? Well maybe we're seeing an interplanetary snowball fight!)

[peem]

where is the blue snowball in the sky . thanks

[JonnyP]

I must try it again from a dark site. All I saw last year was a small fuzzy, barely able to see any nebulosity.

[swamp thing]

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where is the blue snowball in the sky . thanks

Here:

[Ganymede12]

swamp thing, what website did you get that image from?

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

The blue snowball is great. There are quite a few planetaries that show the same blue-green colour, but the blue snowball is one of the brightest.

[Daff]

gonna try it with 200p tonight see if its any better than in a 127 mak.

[swamp thing]

swamp thing, what website did you get that image from?

Ant, it's a screen grab from sky safari app on my iPad.

[peem]

Thanks for the information swamp thing.Not much chance tonight as it is pouring down in the w isles while the rest of the country is sunny

[Astrosurf]

It is a bit spookey isn't it?! It has an almost sci-fi cyclops look about it. Well, to me it does. It's also so very different from other planetaries I see that that increases its oddness.

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Actually, I find the blue snowball much more typical than say the Ring or Dumbbell. There are many like the blue snowball, if perhaps few as bright.

[faulksy]

it is strange now you mention it but lovely all the same, lovely colour though

[RichardL]

First time I saw the Blue Snowball I was very surprised at its colour, and wondered why the astronomy community don't shout more loudly about it. Is it supposed to be a secret? None of the popular books or magazines I had read up to that point had ever mentioned it.

[Daff]

it is strange now you mention it but lovely all the same, lovely colour though

Sure is, I was taken back in a strange way.

It is a bit spookey isn't it?! It has an almost sci-fi cyclops look about it. Well, to me it does. It's also so very different from other planetaries I see that that increases its oddness.

Very sci-fi, I thought I was seeing things at first.

[Ganymede12]

Thanks swamp thing! Is Skysafari available on the PC as well?

[Phil Fargaze]

While you are at it, there is the Blinking Planetary NGC 6826 in Cygnus. That`s another good one!

[Daff]

While you are at it, there is the Blinking Planetary NGC 6826 in Cygnus. That`s another good one!

I will check that out.

[sunshine185]

Couldn't find the blue snowball last night in my 10"dob, is it easy to see or is out barely visible? I use skEye for locating objects but it isn't listed on there for some reason.

[Monty]

Try entering NGC7662

[sunshine185]

yup, no matches on skEye