Into Darkness

[dick_dangerous]

Hi All,

They say that the most important thing for successful observing is a dark site, and while I'm a big advocate of urban astronomy, it is true that the light pollution kills all the views...

Last week we packed up a hire car with our stuff to spend a week with my in-laws outside Basingstoke (Quite dark), my family in the New Forest (Very dark) and finally two days glamping in a yurt on the edge of Exmoor for a wedding (Extremely dark but I'm not sure I'd recommend glamping if you need to get ready for a wedding the nest day!). Needless to say the trusty ST80 was on the packing list, although for the first five nights I wondered why I'd bothered. Wherever we went the cloud seemed destined to follow - my in-laws lucked out on the Saturday as a thick pall of cloud covered the south-east and then we had a clear run of four cloudy nights over the New Forest with my parents. Then finally, after an apocalyptic weather forecast, Thursday night yielded that long hoped for clear spell...

We set up the telescope in the garden - even in the relatively light-polluted environs of the New Forest the difference from the London skies was immediately obvious. The Milky Way was a faint band stretching overhead, just like I remembered as a child, the whole of Ursa Minor was clear and there were numerous stars inside the Square of Pegasus. Time was of the essence - clouds were encroaching from the east at 8.30, already obscuring Aquarius, so I showed my Dad a quick selection of the seasonal highlights. We started with Alberio, more to align the finder than anything else. My father was singularly unimpressed but that's probably because his vision isn't what it was and he finds it hard to discern the colours (Bless him). I moved on to M27 which took plenty of magnification and revealed some form. This was a first for my Dad, so I managed to impress him there. I then moved on to M57 but he was slightly less convinced by it. I could see the Cheerio shape with averted vision, hammering home the benefits of good eyes. As the east was rapidly getting foggy we went further west and I picked out the two Hercules globulars M13 and M92. Both showed distinct graininess in the dark skies. We then packed up as the clouds came over and before my Mum got too annoyed with us.

Friday saw us drive to the fabled dark skies of Exmoor, along with it's equally renowned rain. Wave after wave of torrential showers washed over our little yurt, although in the gaps, stars could be seen through the mistiness. I began to think that maybe I was going to luck out. On Saturday we were at a wedding but the skies were beautifully clear, if hampered by high clouds. Even in Ilfracombe as we got into the car we could make out plenty of stars but back at the yurt the view was one of the best I've had in this hemisphere - the Milky Way glowing brightly as it arched over our heads, and the sky was full of stars. I lit the wood fire to warm my wife's cockles and she very understandingly let me set up outside (Although opted for staying inside our tent). Even as I lined up the finder I knew I was in for something special - the skies of Exmoor, when not covered by cloud, are indeed astonishingly good.

With the (Myopic) naked eye I could easily see M31, the Double Cluster and M13. I started my 'scope on the Pleiades - with the ST80's short focal length this was incredible, the whole cluster filling the field. M31 is nearby, so I then shifted my focus and had a true "Wow" moment - the galaxy filled the field of view with M32 and M110 clearly visible, more so at medium power. Inspired by this I swung back round for the Summer Triangle - I had a quick look at M71; an obvious sparkling patch, then up to M27 which withstood the 10mm eyepiece and the Barlow, showing a wonderful amount of form that I could only dream of in London. I then moved on to the grand prize, the notoriously elusive M33, another one I've never managed before. Even the slightest light pollution will drown it out but in Exmoor it's virtually unmissable. I could clearly see the brighter nuclear region and fainter disc. After that high-point my next target, M72, was something of a let-down. There was a lot of fog around and things got murky near the horizon, so I finished up with a quick view of the Double Cluster which fully blew my mind.

My wife has volunteered Exmoor as our holiday destination of choice for next year I can only keep 'em crossed for some cloud-free skies when we go. It's a shame to be back in the London murk!

DD

[Astro Imp]

Nice report, pleased you managed some great viewing.

Good luck for the future.