I can not make out any Messier objects in the eyepiece

[stevend]

Something else I have thought of, for when the goto has 'one of these days'. After completing the goto setup (two-star is my preference) send the scope to a star near where the target is (in this case Vega). Centre Vega and then press Align (this will bring up an option to replace one of your initial set up stars - either will do). Now send the goto to M57.

[nicks90]

in my 5" reflector in fairly bad LP - ring is very difficult to discern, M13 is a grey cloud, as are most other globs. galaxies are very small fuzzy stars etc.... thats the issue with LP and small aperture.

add in the moon, and you stand no chance!

[Macavity]

Yes, I fear that 5" can be "on the cusp" for many DSOs. I found that my GoTo MAK127 was often actually pointed *at* a DSO, but it was only seen via averted vision or "tapping" the OTA. As others suggest, globular and open clusters are perhaps your best bet...

[Superdavo]

The Ring probably needs a good Moonless night in a 5-inch scope. It was fairly faint on a good night in my old 150p. A good one to start on is M13, as its quite easy to see on any night.

David

[CSM]

Ronin's suggestions of finding Vega first is a good one. Better still, once you have got Vega, do a Sync - see the manual - then you should be able to get the Ring Nebula without any problems, Moon permitting. Also, you get a reticule eyepiece and do the Sync with that then the Ring should be dead centre.

[m37]

Is the 3 star align not meant more for EQ mounts, to reduce cone error? If it is similar software to the skywatcher, the third star just caused problems on AZ mounts. Skywatcher even removed the option in later firmware for AZ mounts.

[LukeSkywatcher]

I cant be of much help as the only time i have seen the Ring was with my 5" Heritage,but i literally stumbled upon it by chance. I was either using a 25mm or a 30mm EP (im thinking i was using my 30mm Vixen NLV as it gives a very sharp and very contrasty view). The Ring was very small indeed,colourless (as would be expected), but very well defined in shape. It basically looked like a ring of smoke (like you would see if blowing rings with a cigarette...................only much much smaller obviously). I can imagine that if your scope is even slightly out of focus or the collimation is slightly out that it would be missed visually even if the Go-To system says it is dead centre in the FOV.

[impactcrater]

hi team,

I am gaining experience w the celestron go to nexstar 127. in the southern sky in winter I located betelgeuse and sirius and used those to do 2 star auto align and away it all went. I started simple and have only more recently moved to DSO. then winter skies faded and my star options were less clear to me and a period of frustration ensued. the southern cross was low and orion gone.

so, I would go out in twilight and sight the moon or saturn as a single object and lock on that and then as it darkened I'd sight , say Acrux using goto and place it in the center of the field , perhaps using a high powered eyepiece for accuracy.

after that , goto is very happy for the rest of the night.

so, as brown dwarf says...the more objects you center, the more accurate goto gets and indeed it tracked the butterfly cluster the whole time I was eating dinner.

[impactcrater]

I have been gaining experience w the celestron nexstar 127 go to and in the beginning I used auto 2 star align. it was winter and betelgeuse and sirius were easy to see. then followed a period of frustration when the southern cross was low and orion had gone so my star options were less clear to me.

now, I go out in the twilight and sight something easly like the moon or saturn or venus and do a single object align. then, as the skies darken, I goto, say Acrux and sight it in the center of a high powered eyepiece. after that I find goto is very good at finding DSO quite closely.

I centerred on the buterfly cluster and it tracked it well whilst I had dinner....

So, really I'm using a single easy object and then fine tuning.

like brown dwarf says, the more objects you center the more accurate goto becomes...

[MarkbPlym]

It probably does not help when I select 'Standard time' instead of 'Daylight Saving' maybe this would have put the telescope out of alignment slightly?

[MarkbPlym]

'Impactcreater' - How big did the Butterfly Cluster look in your eyepiece? I tried that one the other night and all I saw was a few bright stars around the edge of the eyepiece.

[impactcrater]

I thought it looked about 12LY across and 1600 LY away...ho ho....it is M6 and there are a few things called 'butterfly', some of which are nebulae not clusters. It was a lovely sight and the big orange star found in it really stands out...

it is found in scorpius...

happy hunting...

[mitchelln]

It probably does not help when I select 'Standard time' instead of 'Daylight Saving' maybe this would have put the telescope out of alignment slightly?

It would have made a big difference. I made this mistake after the clocks changed!

[Chihlidog]

I realize this post is a few weeks old, but I have been in similar situations and feel like maybe you can learn from my beginner's experience.

I live in Pittsburgh, PA so I deal with annoying light pollution, and I have a 4.5 inch scope. I am trying to nail as many Messiers as I can, and I am learning what my limits are with my conditions and with my equipment. One of the first things you'll come to learn is that many, many DSOs are almost shockingly faint, especially with lots of light pollution. Without a full moon, I can just BARELY make out M81 and M82, which are some of the easiest galaxies to spot. When I say barely, I mean that I almost thought I was imagining it at first. In fact, I had to confirm it by nudging the scope to shake the view a little. I only was convinced when I moved the scope, came back, and "imagined" the same smudges in the same spot.

Brighter objects are much easier, and I might suggest you start with some of them. I myself was out looking for M57 the other night and though I know I had my scope on it, I could not see it. I have looked for several other Messiers that I know I must have had my scope trained correctly on and again unable to see them. M64 is high on my list, but alas, I cannot see it.

I suggest some globular clusters, such as M13. If you want to see a galaxy, M31 is your best bet. It's an obvious smudge in my 4.5 from my skies, even with the full moon. But the globs are really great starter DSOs. THeyre a bit more compact with relatively higher surface brightness and as such easier to see and stand up better to light pollution.

Train your eye. You need to get used to looking for these really faint fuzzies. You need to get used to what to look for and develop your techniques for seeing these extremely faint ones. Until you see a DSO its hard to really imagine looking at something differently than with normal vision but you'll develop this skill as you go along. The key, at least in my opinion, is to start with something easier to spot and work your way to fainter objects. You'll develop the skill that way to see what you're looking for. Until you've actually seen a DSO and experienced it for yourself, its hard to explain how it ACTUALLY works when you're there at the eyepiece.

So, my suggestions.

Start with M13, M5 and M31. Get those in your scope and see how they look to you.

Move on to M81/M82 and know that they will be quite a bit more faint thatn the others. See if you can see them.

Then try for M57, knowing it is not only faint but much SMALLER than the above.

Good luck!!

[MarkbPlym]

Hello Chihlidog thank you for your help and advice. I will give M13 a try first then try M5 and M31. M13 has also been recommended in some other posts above. I have seen some really nice pictures of DSO objects taken with a Nexstar 5se on various forums on the Internet and asking myself, why can't I see any of them in the eyepiece (25mm or less)... Take a look at these pictures on AstroBin. http://www.astrobin.com/gear/3306/celestron-nexstar-5se/ (if I am allowed to publish the link). Mark

[MarkbPlym]

'I have seen some really nice pictures of DSO objects taken with a Nexstar 5se on various forums on the Internet and asking myself, why can't I see any of them in the eyepiece (25mm or less)... ' Oh except the moon, and stars of course!

[happy-kat]

A camera will see more as the shutter can be held open

[MarkbPlym]

looks like I should get into astrophotography then...

[Steve_meg]

Now this might be totally irrelevant to the original post. However the last few nights I have been out have been pretty damp.

A few nights back I took my scope (8se) out left it to cool, the aligned it. Now for some reason I decided not to put my dew cover on.

I then looked around for a bit then went to have a look at M13. Nothing, which I thought was odd until I saw a layer of dew on the corrector.

So maybe something to consider?

[MarkbPlym]

Hi all, another new member of the P.A.S brought his EQ mounted 8" scope to Wembury beach cp the other week, and we were both looking for Uranus. According to Skymap we had our telescopes aligned exactly but we could not see anything in either scope! Any ideas. I know Uranus is pretty difficult to find even in perfect conditions...

[Timbo32]

hi MarkbPlym this is andromeda that i took with my celestron firstscope. i live at bideford just up the road from you. it's the middle smudge 12mm omni plossi used just held camera to e.p on auto. its tiny and faint so the ring must be a nightmare to find!! good luck.. if you drive then if i were you i would drive up to dartmoor only 20mins from you? clear skies Tim:)

[MarkbPlym]

Hello Timbo32, yes I see what you mean., I have been on Dartmoor to stargaze and I have seen Andromeda quite clearly (but no detail of course) with binoculars a few weeks ago. Thanks for the picture.

[Casus belli]

I'd agree that its probably light pollution rather than problems with your go-to that's causing you to miss these faint fuzzies. Get away from any lights that you can see directly as this really helps with your eyes dark adaption. The moon is another source of light pollution. I wouldn't go hunting faint fuzzies if the moon was more than a quarter full.

[Chihlidog]

I'd agree that its probably light pollution rather than problems with your go-to that's causing you to miss these faint fuzzies. Get away from any lights that you can see directly as this really helps with your eyes dark adaption. The moon is another source of light pollution. I wouldn't go hunting faint fuzzies if the moon was more than a quarter full.

I agree with you for the most part, but with his aperture even with a full moon M31 and several globs should still be fairly easy. If he cant see them at ALL then something else is happening.

[Stu]

Agreed, M31 is naked eye under dark skies and visible with binoculars even under urban skies so I would expect it to show under most conditions with an 8", even if only the core.

Stu