Saturn and its Moons - 7 June 2015

[DRT]

Inspired by this thread from BigSumorian I set my scopes up tonight with the sole objective of counting how many Saturnian moons I could spot.

I used the "Saturn Moons" app on my iPhone to locate Titan so that I could get my bearings when I looked through the scope. I intentionally didn't look for any other moons in the app so that my mind couldn't start inventing them when I looked through the eyepiece

Here is the rough sketch I made when I looked through my 13mm Ethos in the 200P Newt at 22.30...

The planet and Titan were easy spots, as was Phoebe about four times the distance of Titan on the other side and slightly below of Saturn. The three moons close to the disk from 9 to 12 o'clock were relatively easy to see but were blinking in and out, probably due to atmospheric impact on focus.

About an hour later when looking through my Delos 10mm in the same scope I noticed a sixth moon below and at a right angle to Titan and the three moons closest to Saturn had moved anti clockwise as viewed through my Newt.

Having now checked the iPhone app for the times I was viewing I think this is what I was looking at...

The only thing I am not sure of is whether I could see Tethys or Mimas. It is possible that they were so close together it was impossible to tell at the magnification I was using.

As it was now darker than at the time of my initial observation I switched the Delos 10mm for the Ethos 8mm. The Delos was definitely sharper and it was easier to see the moons but that might just have been because I was on the limit of what was possible with tonight's sky with the D10mm.

[jimbo84]

Very nice, I was also out trying to spot them tonight, but could only see Titan and Iapetus. Due to checking Sky Safari 4 in advance I imagined I could see Enceladus, but I do not think it likely.

I've only had this scope 3 months and already I want a bigger one, but then that goes for everything, I suppose!

[cotterless45]

Brilliant , well done Stu for lighting this fire !! I spent ages at x300, mostly on the planet, but flitting around finding moons. It was far easier at x100. A light swarm of bees hovered around , some by diverted vision, but the delightful buzz of moons. The seeing was quite extraordinary ,

Nick.

[Stu]

Nice one Derek, glad it's got you hunting them down.

Pretty sure you would have seen Tethys rather than Mimas as it is brighter and was a little further out at the time.

Now the bit where I seem to be a party pooper..... [emoji20].....

I don't think you saw Phoebe as it is too dim. I was checking SkySafari to see whether I just missed it the other night, but it is listed as mag 16.8 so would have been out of range. I'm sure it would not have stood out as being obvious so I guess it was a background star?

Anyway, let's keep hunting. I'm sure I've seen Enceladus and Mimas I the 8" mak when I had it.

[chiltonstar]

The seeing last night was stunning, wasn't it! After admiring Saturn in all her glory (I've never seen as much ring detail) I switched to moon counting, inspired by Stu's thread.

Even with the late twilight, I could see three with direct vision, and another with averted vision. Best mag was x160 (9mm ortho).

Chris

[Qualia]

Lovely report, Derek and great to hear you had a nice session. Love the sketches as well and certainly a great way in creating a lasting record. Depending on the field of view, there are a small number of small stars surrounding Saturn at the moment which makes it tricky to pick out which are the moons and not. A program like Stu has is a great help and so too in a more limited fashion is this.

Look forward to reading more adventures

[DRT]

Now the bit where I seem to be a party pooper..... [emoji20].....

I don't think you saw Phoebe as it is too dim. I was checking SkySafari to see whether I just missed it the other night, but it is listed as mag 16.8 so would have been out of range. I'm sure it would not have stood out as being obvious so I guess it was a background star?

.

That is certainly a possibility, Stu. If it was a star it was very dim and in exactly the place my app was showing Phoebe to be.

Perhaps I saw it with averted imagination?