Leo Double!

[dick_dangerous]

Hi All,

Just got back from a quick foray in the park. I was full of pancakes, the fog was coming up, the dew was everywhere and the seeing was atrocious, but I had some minor coups tonight...

• Jupiter - best view was at low power with just a couple of bands evident.
• Mars - Much better with the 150P. Managed x120 with few problems. Some evidence of detail but not a superb view (x240 was a bit much this evening)
• Eskimo Nebula - Fast becoming a new favourite. Great city target due to its high surface brightness
• M81 - Bodes was fairly bright but I had difficulty finding the cigar.
• M67 - Stars twinkling in and out of view. Quite an enchanting cluster.
• M53 - My first globular with the 150P. Mostly just a fuzz-ball but far clearer than with the ST80. I was going to look for M5, but the dew on the finder was getting bad by this point.
• M65 and M66 - High point of the evening was finding these two as faint blurs in the eyepiece. Where are those dark skies?! And where was the other member of the trio? It truly is amazing what you can see from a foggy London park.

Thought I'd share before climbing the stairs to Bedfordshire (Except I live in a flat so no climbing is involved...)

DD

[Langy]

Sounds like you had a good evening! 

[Qualia]

Excellent stuff, [removed word] and really glad to see you out there despite all the odds against you. Amazing work. The Leo triplet can be made out from a city but you may need to use a low magnification eyepiece, something that will give you about 1.2º TFOV. Obviously this will work against you because the sky background is lighter but at the right hour on another night, you should have success.

Obviously, LP robs the DSOs of their inherent beauty, so nothing can beat dark skies but as you've most excellently shown, none of this ought to deter anyone from seeking out the entire Messier list from their light soaked observing site.

I feel your post is an inspiration for everyone not to use LP as some kind of excuse for not getting out there and enjoying the wonders of nature.

It truly is amazing what you can see from a foggy London park.
 

[cotterless45]

Some lovely targets there. There's enough to see from town without stretching yourself for the difficult exotics.

Nick

[Stu]

Very nice report DD, some great targets there.

I too managed M65/66 last night, that's the first time from my garden so you are right, it can be done!

Stu

[hobbes22]

Nice report DD, and you have given me some top tips for what to look at next time i get outside :-)

[dick_dangerous]

I've just got my fingers crossed for a week of clear weather when we're down in Cornwall in late April! I'm glad that things like the Leo Trio are visible from London though - it's kind of why I bought the 150P, to access more of those DSOs.

DD

[Astro Imp]

Great report DD, you are really getting some great results from your LP location.

Look forward to reading your next report.

Good luck.

[dick_dangerous]

I'm quite lucky that I have Bushy Park on the doorstep - it's amazing the difference just getting away from the street lights. There's a little interference from the NPL across the park and looking north and east tends to have a lot of skyglow, but the view south isn't so bad and tends to be where I get the best results. Unfortunately the park has a habit of generating a lot of fog, dew and mud - my telescope looked like it had been out in a rain storm when I got it in last night!

DD

[andrew63]

Glad to hear reports with the new telescope, and what can be seen under those skies.

andrew

[Mike73]

Looking forward to your report from your upcoming trip to Cornwall already, just hope the weather is on your side.

[dick_dangerous]

Looking forward to your report from your upcoming trip to Cornwall already, just hope the weather is on your side.

I am looking forward to the Cornwall trip for so many reasons! Many of them are edible, but the dark skies are also going to be a highlight. We'll be there around new moon, so I have high hopes of some galaxy hunting. Don't suppose you know any good observing sites a short drive from Sennen Cove?!

DD

[AlexB67]

Excellent stuff, [removed word] and really glad to see you out there despite all the odds against you. Amazing work. The Leo triplet can be made out from a city but you may need to use a low magnification eyepiece, something that will give you about 1.2º TFOV. Obviously this will work against you because the sky background is lighter but at the right hour on another night, you should have

I feel your post is an inspiration for everyone not to use LP as some kind of excuse for not getting out there and enjoying the wonders of nature.

LP never stopped me so far pulling in galaxies, sure there are limits, bit it is not as if the Leo triplet was a struggle, still a fine sight last night, all three were clearly visible in one of the more light polluted cities around I live in.  

I'll join he club of not letting light pollution pollute the brain, and get on with it   . The darker sites are all that much more fun and there to appreciate the few times I get to visit them, and all that practice pulling those faint fuzzies from poorer skies is good prep, it teaches me to see more with less

[Mike73]

I am looking forward to the Cornwall trip for so many reasons! Many of them are edible, but the dark skies are also going to be a highlight. We'll be there around new moon, so I have high hopes of some galaxy hunting. Don't suppose you know any good observing sites a short drive from Sennen Cove?!

DD

Cant say I can help there, Sennen is the other end of Cornwall for me, I used to surf down that way a bit but I was never interested in the stars then.

Just aim towards Lands End (its only 5 miles from Sennen) to get away from the light dome from Penzance. You'll have a couple thousand miles of Atlantic Ocean and zero LP, I reckon you'll have a NELM somewhere around 6.4ish, Leo and Virgo will be perfectly placed for you, just think of all those galaxies....!

[jabeoo1]

I am looking forward to the Cornwall trip for so many reasons! Many of them are edible, but the dark skies are also going to be a highlight. We'll be there around new moon, so I have high hopes of some galaxy hunting. Don't suppose you know any good observing sites a short drive from Sennen Cove?!

DD

Cant say I can help there, Sennen is the other end of Cornwall for me, I used to surf down that way a bit but I was never interested in the stars then.

Just aim towards Lands End (its only 5 miles from Sennen) to get away from the light dome from Penzance. You'll have a couple thousand miles of Atlantic Ocean and zero LP, I reckon you'll have a NELM somewhere around 6.4ish, Leo and Virgo will be perfectly placed for you, just think of all those galaxies....!

Mike is spot on here.  I have spent ages down in this part of Cornwall, head to the Minack Theatre.  I am sure the car park stays open even when the Theatre is closed.  That outcrop of land looks outwards over more dark sky than you can point a scope at in a life time.  Treen & Porthcurno are just along again....really for south facing this is perfect.  For north facing you need to get out onto the world heritage coast line.  The area along the cliff from Pendeen is nice (although there is a lighthouse but probably only on in times of bad weather !).  Further along east from there you have Morvah & Zennor, between these small hamlets and towns it is pitch black.  I once walked from the pub having to virtually feel my way home trying not to step on frogs that were all over the narrow wet road.  The list goes on & you can't really go wrong. 

[dick_dangerous]

Cant say I can help there, Sennen is the other end of Cornwall for me, I used to surf down that way a bit but I was never interested in the stars then.

Just aim towards Lands End (its only 5 miles from Sennen) to get away from the light dome from Penzance. You'll have a couple thousand miles of Atlantic Ocean and zero LP, I reckon you'll have a NELM somewhere around 6.4ish, Leo and Virgo will be perfectly placed for you, just think of all those galaxies....!

I like those odds! Only hope the Dob will fit in the hire car with all our other assorted junk, but then that's part of the reason I have the ST80...

Mike is spot on here.  I have spent ages down in this part of Cornwall, head to the Minack Theatre.  I am sure the car park stays open even when the Theatre is closed.  That outcrop of land looks outwards over more dark sky than you can point a scope at in a life time.  Treen & Porthcurno are just along again....really for south facing this is perfect.  For north facing you need to get out onto the world heritage coast line.  The area along the cliff from Pendeen is nice (although there is a lighthouse but probably only on in times of bad weather !).  Further along east from there you have Morvah & Zennor, between these small hamlets and towns it is pitch black.  I once walked from the pub having to virtually feel my way home trying not to step on frogs that were all over the narrow wet road.  The list goes on & you can't really go wrong. 

Thanks for the tips - especially for south-facing locations. Sennen Cove faces north, so from our holiday cottage I'll not get a great view of Virgo.

DD

[PaulCH]

Hi DD and a big thank you !

like you I am a newbie - still hate that word! - and i had got it into my mind that I had to have a perfectly clear night to view and have been sitting indoors getting a tad frustrated! reading your post it dawned on me that I didnt have to have perfect conditions to get out there and start looking, after all, when you have nothing to compare it to, then something is better than nothing.

last night managed to get all of my targets, the double star in the big dipper, the moon through a thin veil of cloud, is this nature's filter? and all 4 moons around jupiter - spent sometime looking at this, but havent been able to see the big red spot yet and al without using the GOTO, not hard i know, but must just remember to ensure that the red dot is turned off next time i put it away!

so thanks once again for the inspiration DD

Paul

[dick_dangerous]

last night managed to get all of my targets, the double star in the big dipper, the moon through a thin veil of cloud, is this nature's filter? and all 4 moons around jupiter - spent sometime looking at this, but havent been able to see the big red spot yet and al without using the GOTO, not hard i know, but must just remember to ensure that the red dot is turned off next time i put it away!

The Great Red Spot is a bit tricky because it's not always visible. There are various apps that tell you when it's around and, I think, they're fairly reliable. I use Stellarium and so far it has been correct on its predictions of when the spot will show.

Glad to have inspired others to get out there, even under London's orange skies!

DD

[Stu]

It transits at 10.39 tomorrow night and the forecast is promising so maybe give it a go?

Stu

[johnd]

Hi All,

Just got back from a quick foray in the park. I was full of pancakes, the fog was coming up, the dew was everywhere and the seeing was atrocious, but I had some minor coups tonight...

• Jupiter - best view was at low power with just a couple of bands evident.
• Mars - Much better with the 150P. Managed x120 with few problems. Some evidence of detail but not a superb view (x240 was a bit much this evening)
• Eskimo Nebula - Fast becoming a new favourite. Great city target due to its high surface brightness
• M81 - Bodes was fairly bright but I had difficulty finding the cigar.
• M67 - Stars twinkling in and out of view. Quite an enchanting cluster.
• M53 - My first globular with the 150P. Mostly just a fuzz-ball but far clearer than with the ST80. I was going to look for M5, but the dew on the finder was getting bad by this point.
• M65 and M66 - High point of the evening was finding these two as faint blurs in the eyepiece. Where are those dark skies?! And where was the other member of the trio? It truly is amazing what you can see from a foggy London park.

Thought I'd share before climbing the stairs to Bedfordshire (Except I live in a flat so no climbing is involved...)

DD

Hello, I'm new here but I thought that you might have some viewing tips especially as your not a million miles away, I'm in Wimbledon area with a bang on South facing garden view. I have a 12" Skywatcher Dob a 12mm and a 25mm EP with a 2.25 Barlow. I'd like to get into messier objects and wondered what would be good for the current skies over SW London? Would the full moon make it almost impossible over South views, if not what are good ones to start on for a beginner? Thanks

[rory]

Many dso's are not recomended under a full moon. But Globulars and open clusters are still doable . Most galaxies and nebula are tough if not impossible under a full moon.

Have you downloaded stellarium ? It's a free software that will aid you in planning viewing sessions.

[dick_dangerous]

Hello, I'm new here but I thought that you might have some viewing tips especially as your not a million miles away, I'm in Wimbledon area with a bang on South facing garden view. I have a 12" Skywatcher Dob a 12mm and a 25mm EP with a 2.25 Barlow. I'd like to get into messier objects and wondered what would be good for the current skies over SW London? Would the full moon make it almost impossible over South views, if not what are good ones to start on for a beginner? Thanks

I personally don't bother with DSOs when the moon's full. I was out on Saturday with a friend and we had a quick look at the Orion Nebula but it wasn't much to write home about. Certainly the moon produces more light pollution even than the London street lights... We ended up concentrating on Jupiter (GRS visible with some excellent seeing), Mars and, of course, the moon.

Your Dob has twice the aperture of mine, so many more objects should be within your grasp. I find that surface brightness is the big decider on how easy things are to see from London. Open clusters, Globulars and Planetary Nebulae make excellent targets but most diffuse nebulae and galaxys are much harder work.

Right now, without the moon there to cause problems, a few of my recommended targets would be:-

• M42 - The Orion Nebula, found just below Orion's Belt. It's the middle star of the the "Dagger."
• M44 - Praesepe, although it may look better in your finderscope than in the telescope itself. It's very big and scattered so use lowest power.
• M81 - Bode's Nebula, a nice bright galaxy in Ursa Major. It's a little trickier to find but a Google search should reveal a few useful star hops.
• M53 - A reasonably faint globular in Coma Berenices. Easy to find because it's right next to a fairly bright star.
• NGC 2392 - Eskimo Nebula, faint but has high surface brightness so can be found relatively easily under light pollution. It's in the constellation of Gemini, very close to Jupiter, next to a star called Wasat.

I think that's one of most types of DSO to be getting on with! Download Stellarium if you haven't already: you can adjust the LP level to suit in the settings menu which can be useful when you're trying to refer to the actual view outside. I've heard that there might be a couple of clear nights in SW London this week, so here's hoping!

DD

[johnd]

Thanks for the very useful information and yes I just discovered that wonderful tool 'Stellarium'. Yes I hope there will be some clear patches, I didn't go out lastnight as my skies were either moon glaring or cloudy.