7/12/07 report

[Andrew*]

5.30pm - clear sky with some veil cloud. Vega still high up, and therefore M13 high up. Only seen this once with the 4" apo, and didn't resolve the stars very well, so I had to see it before it was gone for the winter.

Did the full set-up and after a very long search for it, I found it accidentally!! :oops: And still I couldn't be sure it was M13 until I checked SN. The reason it took so long was because bright lights in this direction meant I couldn't find nearby stars naked eye. I got the 3-6mm Nagler in there. That's pretty awesome - my first real globular cluster experience. It's difficult to ensure perfect focus, but from time to time central stars popped out beautifully. I spent a loooong time studying it and saw a lovely arc of stars going across the cluster. Best view was between 150 and 200x. The view in the ED80 was nice, but didn't resolve anything. Conditions seemed fine.

Left the lot set

up and went in to have supper at 6.30. Came back at 7.30 and tried and failed to re-find M13 - too low already

I'd brought the laptop with me so I spun round to M45 with the intention of getting some snaps with the Atik/ED80. Couldn't see a single star on the screen I tweaked the settings like mad, focussed right in and right out. Nothing. Then the laptop battery gave up

No matter. I'll try with the SLR. Got it focused as good I could visually and took ~20 minutes data before the film ran out. I did a very fast alignment so I only tried up to 2 minute exposures. I also got a couple of Holmes and Mars. In ~2 weeks I'll find out how I did

I spent another half hour observing. I've recently upgraded my 32mm Meade 4000 SWA to a 5000 Plossl and I'm loving it. I'm not kidding when I say its entire field is sharp to the edge at f/5. At a cost, though - field curvature. There's also blackening with incorrect eye placement, but this is not serious. Still, a very pleasant EP and well worth the cheap upgrade.

Checked out Mars at 333x. Seeing very steady but I only got a slightly orange, very bright disc. Closer look only just revealed polar cap and dark regions.

Holmes - big and faint and more comet shaped.

M31. Actually registered neighbour M110 for the first time. It's always been there, but I was unsure of the scale of it... M31 was a very pretty sight, and showed a nice shape, although no lanes. The TV Wide Field appeared to show slightly more than the Meade 20mm plossl, but I can't be sure. I've got a 5000 SWA on the way to replace the Wide Field. The reason being is that the metal end scrapes on my glasses rather nastily if I'm to see the full FOV, and I've been greasing up the eye lens with eye lash grease, so I wanted a more comfy eyepiece.

And then it was already time to go home Skies were looking very very nice now, and Orion was about to pop above the rooftops, but duty called me home. I could have happily been out another hour and taken in the double cluster, M33, M51, M81, Auriga clusters, Orion of course etc. etc. etc.

Anyway, there'll be another clear night some day...

Andrew

[lunator]

Andrew

Nice report

I have been out for a couple of hours and conditions are pretty good alothough seeing isn't the best

I hope to have a look at Mars later tonight

Cheers

Ian

[Astroman]

http://stargazerslounge.com/index.php/topic,16327.msg169354.html#msg169354

Here's a link to my technique for observing globulars. It works! I tell this to rank newbies at the eyepiece all the time. You should see their smiles as the details become visible!

[Andrew*]

Thanks AM, I'll remember that.

I really need to get out more often and for longer, because I'm forgetting how to find things quickly. A select few objects are a second nature, so I tend to just cycle through them and get to know them, but when I want something new, I need to work for it!

Cheers

Andrew