Pup companion star of Sirius.

[JOC]

Hi Alan

Thanks for that information, I will go and research 'scintillation' it certain makes Sirius look pretty spectacular as an object to view for interest even it doesn't help from a pure 'observing a star' perspective.  -16C Brrrr......that's viewing dedication - I am capable of freezing after an hour or so at just a degree or two below when I look through my new telescope.  Now skiing is another 'kettle of fish' perhaps you could 'swish' some of that cold air over to Austria for the next couple of weeks - it would make your viewing more comfortable (though I guess Sirius would end up more 'sparkly') and it would hold the snow in our ski resort for a couple of weeks until we arrive!! LOL

[chiltonstar]

I've seen the Pup with both of my Maks and with my ED80, not the long focus refractor. I tend to look on any occasion when Sirius is well above the horizon, not over a house or driveway, and not scintillating very much, with a success rate of about (eyeballed) one in three occasions. I adjust the magnification upwards to still show faint stars as pinpoints rather than blurred, and use one of my orthos if possible. Knowing where to look helps of course!

Chris

[John]

7 hours ago, JOC said:

NB.  John - that picture above is the 'pup' that tiny dot of light at about 7 o'clock to main star between the flares in that picture?

Thats it. The Pup star is around 10,000 times dimmer than Sirius A, which is why it is rather tricky to see.

[JOC]

Hi John

Wow!  I can quite now see why people have problems with it.  I shan't be at all disappointed if I don't see it now!!  However, thanks to that picture at least I know where it will be hiding!  Thanks for the confirmation.

[John]

2 hours ago, JOC said:

Hi John

Wow!  I can quite now see why people have problems with it.  I shan't be at all disappointed if I don't see it now!!  However, thanks to that picture at least I know where it will be hiding!  Thanks for the confirmation.

When I've observed it, I've found that it follows Sirius A as it drifts across the field of view of my undriven dob.

[alan potts]

Just a little follow up on the scintillation brought up by JOC. Last night Sirius was at it like a lighthouse on a banned substances even when it was well above levels it reaches in England, this follows 3 nights when it was so still. Unfortunately I still can't get out due to masses of snow. last night the forecast promised a continued slow melt but it was infact minus 10, how wrong can they get it.

Alan

[John]

1 hour ago, alan potts said:

Just a little follow up on the scintillation brought up by JOC. Last night Sirius was at it like a lighthouse on a banned substances even when it was well above levels it reaches in England, this follows 3 nights when it was so still. Unfortunately I still can't get out due to masses of snow. last night the forecast promised a continued slow melt but it was infact minus 10, how wrong can they get it.

Alan

We have had about a week of solid cloud here Alan. Back end of storm system "Doris" today to round things off

Nothing "scintillating" about the skies here at the moment !

[alan potts]

Yes John, I watch breakfast most mornings for the first hour and the forecasters seems to cheer up no end when he/she reports bad weather, I watched this morning as wave after wave of rain and cloud rolled off her tongue, it wasn't just Ian Mc Caskill that enjoys it, he seemed to get excitement out of reporting it.

Alan

[rockystar]

On 1/30/2017 at 16:36, John said:

Thats it. The Pup star is around 10,000 times dimmer than Sirius A, which is why it is rather tricky to see.

Unless you use your x-ray vision