Keffalonia 3, 24th & 26th September

[KevUU]

The third and alas final set of my reports from Keffalonia.

I was trying to get some fully dark skies - and didn't entirely succeed - but still I really saved the best for last even if it didn't all go according to plan. Anyway I'm getting ahead of things. Here goes:

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24th September

2230 - 0030. Clear. Found a spot on the site out of the way of lights, but now the waxing gibbous moon is washing out the sky. Approx VLM <5 but didn't record properly.

I've had a few doubles around Cygnus on my list from someone's recommendations, so since it's up near the zenith tonight is the night.

Albireo - Split is easy even at x13. I've observed this before and commented that it was "quite pleasant", but don't remember noticing or thinking about the star colours. The colour difference is striking tonight, and makes for a pleasing view.

16 Cygni - I prefer this one in a wider eyepiece. Apparently the fainter of the two is known to have a planet orbiting it, which grounds the fact that it's a star system for me, and makes it all the cooler...

61 Cygni - Very near the zenith which is very hard work with the ST80 on the EQ1 - the legs are in the way of the slo-mo knobs, and I'm crawling on the floor to get the finder on the target. I managed to find this and enjoyed the sight, possibly more for the eventual achievement than the actual view!

Next I figured I'd carry on around Cygnus:

I had a try for the North American Nebula (NGC 7000), but failed spectacularly. I'm not sure if this is even possible without filters on a 3", but there was absolutely nothing there against the grey washout from the moon tonight.

M39 - I can plainly see a nice triangular shape, having found this easily. But details are impossible tonight with the moon's washout so time to change tack or retire for the night... Nearby NGC 7082 confirms the same: again easily found, and can see the structure at x50, but details are not worthwhile with the washout.

So. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em. Or, if you can't observe despite it, observe it. To the moon

Everything's dewing up a bit - it seems to be a warm muggy evening, not cooling down as much as others, so there's clearly moister air around - but I had a nice look around the surface at x50. Craters along the terminator are showing nice details. I've been enjoying seeing the moon in the blue sky the last few afternoons so it's nice to have a closer look too.

As well as the dew and moonlight washout, there's the start of some thin wispy clouds drifting across now; I think a hint is being severely dropped so I'm off to bed zzzzz

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At this point I figured I'd had my last useful session of the holiday with the moon staying up later and later, but after some partnerial encouragement I decided to get up in the middle of the next night, as the moon set, and have a last look at these dark skies. It had to be that night, as the following night it would be 0500 before the moonwash cleared with sunrise at 0630.

So, alarm set for 3am, here goes...

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0330-0540. Decided to get up at stupid-o-clock to try to get a good sky after the moon set. My first time for such astronomical commitment/foolhardiness... Moon had just set when I got out, sky totally clear. Approx VLM 5.5.

Spotted 3 shooters already, just while setting up and finding my way around the sky for this time of night

Couldn't help myself but start with Andromeda. Love the view of all three at x27: Andromeda galaxy dominates, with the small M32 tucked in on one side and the fainter more spread out M110 hiding over on the other, set on a backdrop of sparse stars. Wonderful.

Next the nearby M33 Pinwheel Galaxy / Triangulum Galaxy. At 5.7 I wondered if it might be vaguely discernable naked eye, but I can't see any trace. In the scope it's fairly faint at x13, needing aversion to see much of anything. Okay at x27, pointless at x50, but best right out wide at x13. Really hard to see any detail at all though. Nice to know I'm looking at another galaxy - the next largest in our local group after our Milky Way and Andromeda - and seeing it as it was 2.8 million years ago. Eeek.

(Gah! Oranges keep dropping off the trees with a *crump-rustle* and making me jump...)

Further up along the edge of Triangulum is C28 (NGC 752), a nice mag 5.7 oc. Since I was in the area I thought I'd pop in for a stop here; I'm glad I did, it's a nice wide cluster with a run of some brighter stars along the bottom edge and a nice dense-ish spread of fainter stars, making for a satisfying scene. As I look around there're always more faint stars popping up just beside where I'm looking, which is pretty pleasing.

I glimpsed a few more shooters too, one blasted right across the eyepiece

I eventually got a mozzie who'd been lapping my head for the last hour, and scribbled some quick notes before I carried on, but turned back to the scope to find it thoroughly dewed over. pfffft.

This sky's amazing though.

Orion's here and looks fantastic, including the Orion Nebula. It was setting by the time I got interested earlier in the year so I never got a good view of it even naked eye. Now it's stunning. Just across in the Unicorn the Rosette cluster/nebula is visible naked eye. Details around the Hyades are amazingly clear (sigma and theta Tauri - wide doubles - are both splittable). And I wish my scope hadn't dewed before I got a look at Jupiter, which dominates that part of the sky. Gemini is there too, so all in all I'm pretty excited for the Autumn's viewing.

But with a full moon approaching fast I think tonight was my last view of the holiday, and I won't get skies like these again for a while

Verbatim field notes:

"Anyway calling it quits at 0515.

Gah! I can't drag myself away. There's a warm breeze and a black sky with the whole universe to look up at, it's too marvelous to go inside."

(Eventually made it in at 0540)

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On that night I noticed that after looking at the iPad to check where or what something was, the sky didn't look as black and it was a while before I could see details as well. People have said it on the forums but I now believe them - even in night mode an iPad knackers dark adaptation. So I really never fully dark adapted that night (or ever really since I always use the iPad) - and it was still all sorts of "wow"

All in all a good few sessions in Keffalonia, both with the scope and naked eye. I added 17 new DSOs to my list, along with 2 planets and 3 moons, and a couple of doubles; I also got much better views of some objects I'd observed before, and of course those naked eye views!

We had a great holiday in between, mostly featuring swimming in the sea, lounging around, and exploring some of the villages and towns on the island. Oh and great food too!

Thanks for reading, I hope it's been of interest to someone somewhere.

Clear skies all

[kookoo_gr]

very nice report, i live at kefalonia and if you can find a good dark spot away from the LP from Argostoli you can see plenty os DSO's especially at Mt. Ainos, did you go at the observatory?

[KevUU]

I must confess I didn't find time for much research before we went, so I didn't even know there was an observatory! Oops...

We were based down in Katelios, and most of my observing was on the apartment site with one drive down to the beach. I did like the looks of taking the scope up Mt Ainos, but never had energy for the drive, didn't fancy it in the dark, and some of the tracks were a bit dicey in our little hire car too!

Really enjoyed the holiday, nice quiet place if you avoid the main tourist traps I'm slightly jealous that you get those skies all the time!!

[Double Kick Drum]

A fantastic set of reports (including the older ones)!

Very jealous of the clear skies and additional viewing from that latitude.

Clear skies!

[michael.h.f.wilkinson]

Very nice haul again, and an excellent report. NGC 7000 is visible in my 15x70 binoculars, without a filter, so a 3" scope should be OK. Moonlight will have been the main problem

[Astro Imp]

Congratulations on a great series of reports, I for one have enjoyed them immensely and am sorry I don't have more to look forward too.

[KevUU]

A fantastic set of reports (including the older ones)!

Very jealous of the clear skies and additional viewing from that latitude.

Clear skies!

Thanks you It's a shame I didn't find the better location before the moon got involved, but it was goodfun anyway.

[KevUU]

Very nice haul again, and an excellent report. NGC 7000 is visible in my 15x70 binoculars, without a filter, so a 3" scope should be OK. Moonlight will have been the main problem

Thanks Michael. I'll leave the NA neb on the list then

[KevUU]

Congratulations on a great series of reports, I for one have enjoyed them immensely and am sorry I don't have more to look forward too.

Thanks for the encouragement, I appreciate it. I'm looking forward to the winter viewing now (I deliberately didn't look east much) - if only it would clear up!