One bright and two faint nebulae

[Nyctimene]

This morning, I was out for an unplanned session with my 8"f/4 Hofheim Instruments traveldob, using two new additions to my equipment - a 24mmf 82° Maxvision eyepiece, and a 2" Astronomik UHC filter. A quite powerful combo, giving a field of 2,46°, mag 33x and an exit pupil of exactly 6mm, so  ideally suited for large, faint nebulae. The look of the North America nebula a few days ago was the best I ever had. So I tried to spot the California Nebula in  rising Perseus, as the Astronomik filter allows H-Beta light to pass (99% transmission). Average conditions for observing with NELM of 5,6 mag (02h30m CEST). Starting from Xi Per northward, and using SkySafari, it was extremely difficult to spot the nebula. For 15 minutes, I saw absolutely nothing;  afterwards, always using averted vision, I was able to make out an extremely dim structureless glow for about 20 to 30% of observing time. Probably the sky conditions had somewhat improved. A bit exhausted, I switched to the North America nebula, almost at zenith. What a difference! The NaN appeared "gleaming" bright, showing marked outlines, the "Mini-Orion" asterism's belt pointing directly at the "Gulf of Mexico" and a wealth of details. Even the nearby Pelican nebula, much fainter, could be made out  with direct vision. For short moments, the "beak" region showed as separated from the "body";  I've never seen that before. Rapidly upcoming clouds stopped the session.

So, another two cosmic challenges ticked off the list; I guess, with better observing conditions and a higher position in the sky, the California nebula might become a more regular target for me. The widefield/UHC combo is really tempting for more large faint gaseous nebulae. Quite contented, and so to bed at 03.30.

Thanks for reading

Stephan

[scarp15]

Nice report Stephan and just a touch envious as I was out at a dark site last night with the promise of clear skies with Cygnus being the primary objective, until cloud blanketed the sky as it grew dark ending the start of my new season. Good account for revealing features in the Pelican, concerning the California, keep at it, I consider it as a more successful and complete target using my H-beta filter, justifying the use of this filter type almost on par with the OIII for its relevance at revealing the Veil. It is a target I enjoy looking for when located up high and when transparency is good. My 31mm nagler does a great job on this object. Very interesting scope that you are using, look forward to following your nebulae reports as the season progresses.  

[Nyctimene]

Thanks, Iain, for your reply and comment!

17 hours ago, scarp15 said:

Very interesting scope that you are using

Indeed, a little gem, and, at the moment, my most used telescope. It's stored, set up completely, in the shed, and can be carried out in one haul, weighing just 8 kgs  - a real grab-and-go scope. Excellent quality of build (cabinet-grade woodwork) and optics. The 8" would be the scope, if I were allowed to own just a single one (luckily, that's not a problem). Here's a photo:

and the website (sorry, no English version, but a lot of nice pictures):

http://www.hofheiminstruments.com/

(they sell and ship worldwide, AFAIK)

of course, no relation/affiliation with these - just a very contented owner!

Stephan

[PeterW]

The california is bigger than the North America and lacks the hard edges. Sweeping through the region will be your best bet, or seeing if you can find an even wider field of view. Good luck

 

Peter