Time to play with my Christmas toys

[Littleguy80]

December has been a bit of a bust for astronomy. Christmas with 4 kids and all the festive parties just haven't left time to get out under the stars. I'm not complaining though as I enjoyed everything. Last Christmas I got my first telescope so the anniversary felt like a bit of milestone. This Christmas I got some more astronomy related gifts. Some 10x50 binoculars and a Moon atlas.

First light for the bins came last night. I noticed the skies had cleared around 11:45pm when I came down to prepare a hot water bottle for my wife. I popped outside for a quick look at the Pleiades. The cluster was much bigger when viewed through the bins. It made me realise that I was missing a lot even at lower power in the telescope. I also spotted a meteor before the kettled boiled. Off to be bed I went but I set my bladder to wake me up early...

6:25 AM and my bladder woke me up as planned  A quick peek out the window confirmed the sky was still clear. After answering nature's alarm clock, I went outside with the bins to give them a proper test run. I've ready many accounts of the current dawn planet line up so was excited to be out to see them first hand. Jupiter and Mars were bright and easy to spotted naked eye. With the bins, I was able to pick out two of the Galilean moons. Mars was a very pretty deep orange, not quite red. I had a look for Mercury too. I think I spotted it very low on the horizon in a gap between trees. I wasn't totally confident I'd correctly identified it though. Next to Jupiter was a pretty pair of stars, the brighter of which I believe was Zubenelgenubi. I also split Mizar in Ursa Major and had a look at Vega making a triangle with Sulafat and Sheliak. To finish the early morning session, I tracked the ISS across the sky. At times, I thought that I could see two separate points of light from the two solar arrays but that may have been from the wobbly view! Lovely way to start the day.

The skies stayed clear and, after a day out with the family, I returned to the garden around 4:30pmwith my scope and freshly unwrapped copy of the 21st Century Atlas of the Moon. I set myself up with my 5mm BGO which gives me 180x magnification. I decided to concentrate on the Copernicus region of the Moon. I started with Riphaeus Mountains moving along to the Lansberg crater, Reinhold crater and finally Copernicus itself. According to the atlas, the mountains at the centre of Copernicus are 900m tall! I also picked out the Hortensius dome as it's part of the Lunar 100. After this I browsed along to Archimedes and the Apennine Mountains, finishing on Plato. I'm determined to enjoy the Moon more this year rather than treat it as a something that simply spoils my DSO viewing. This has certainly given me a taste for it.

With the sky being properly dark now, I got the bins out again. I started with M45 and again noted it's extended size when viewed through the 10x50's. I spent some time with Auriga. I easily found the central-ish collection of stars made up of 16 through 19 Aur. However, I really struggled to find M36, M37 and M38. It's definitely going to take some practise to get my eye in using the 10x magnification of the binoculars after using nothing lower than 38x in the telescope. I moved onto Cassiopeia and had similar issues finding NGC 457. It did cross my mind that the bright moon may be making finding these clusters more difficult. M31 came next, an easy spot but still fainter than I was expecting which backed up my thoughts on the moon's brightness impacting the viewing. After that I found the double cluster. It took a second or two before I realised what I'd found. A really nice site in the binoculars. For a bit of a challenge, I went after Uranus. With a bit of help from SkySafari, I was able to confirm a siting of Uranus through the bins. I was very pleased with this. I really enjoy the speed that I can move around the sky with the binoculars. It's also find that seeing the different colours of stars is much easier when viewed over a larger field of view. This was one of the things that occurred to me as I finished up on the Hyades cluster. 

It was time to come in for a warm up and have some tea. After that, I'll be back outside for more stargazing  

[andrew63]

Great report Neil - from your description it sounds like you saw Mercury also. I saw it this morning very close to the horizon, naked eye and in 10x50s and it really stands out - brighter than anything else in that vicinity.   Your putting those Christmas gifts to good use !

andrew

[Littleguy80]

6 minutes ago, andrew63 said:

Great report Neil - from your description it sounds like you saw Mercury also. I saw it this morning very close to the horizon, naked eye and in 10x50s and it really stands out - brighter than anything else in that vicinity.   Your putting those Christmas gifts to good use !

andrew

Thank you, Andrew and thank you for confirming the Mercury sighting. That’s a first for me  

[Trikeflyer]

2 hours ago, Littleguy80 said:

December has been a bit of a bust for astronomy. Christmas with 4 kids and all the festive parties just haven't left time to get out under the stars. I'm not complaining though as I enjoyed everything. Last Christmas I got my first telescope so the anniversary felt like a bit of milestone. This Christmas I got some more astronomy related gifts. Some 10x50 binoculars and a Moon atlas.

First light for the bins came last night. I noticed the skies had cleared around 11:45pm when I came down to prepare a hot water bottle for my wife. I popped outside for a quick look at the Pleiades. The cluster was much bigger when viewed through the bins. It made me realise that I was missing a lot even at lower power in the telescope. I also spotted a meteor before the kettled boiled. Off to be bed I went but I set my bladder to wake me up early...

6:25 AM and my bladder woke me up as planned  A quick peek out the window confirmed the sky was still clear. After answering nature's alarm clock, I went outside with the bins to give them a proper test run. I've ready many accounts of the current dawn planet line up so was excited to be out to see them first hand. Jupiter and Mars were bright and easy to spotted naked eye. With the bins, I was able to pick out two of the Galilean moons. Mars was a very pretty deep orange, not quite red. I had a look for Mercury too. I think I spotted it very low on the horizon in a gap between trees. I wasn't totally confident I'd correctly identified it though. Next to Jupiter was a pretty pair of stars, the brighter of which I believe was Zubenelgenubi. I also split Mizar in Ursa Major and had a look at Vega making a triangle with Sulafat and Sheliak. To finish the early morning session, I tracked the ISS across the sky. At times, I thought that I could see two separate points of light from the two solar arrays but that may have been from the wobbly view! Lovely way to start the day.

The skies stayed clear and, after a day out with the family, I returned to the garden around 4:30pmwith my scope and freshly unwrapped copy of the 21st Century Atlas of the Moon. I set myself up with my 5mm BGO which gives me 180x magnification. I decided to concentrate on the Copernicus region of the Moon. I started with Riphaeus Mountains moving along to the Lansberg crater, Reinhold crater and finally Copernicus itself. According to the atlas, the mountains at the centre of Copernicus are 900m tall! I also picked out the Hortensius dome as it's part of the Lunar 100. After this I browsed along to Archimedes and the Apennine Mountains, finishing on Plato. I'm determined to enjoy the Moon more this year rather than treat it as a something that simply spoils my DSO viewing. This has certainly given me a taste for it.

With the sky being properly dark now, I got the bins out again. I started with M45 and again noted it's extended size when viewed through the 10x50's. I spent some time with Auriga. I easily found the central-ish collection of stars made up of 16 through 19 Aur. However, I really struggled to find M36, M37 and M38. It's definitely going to take some practise to get my eye in using the 10x magnification of the binoculars after using nothing lower than 38x in the telescope. I moved onto Cassiopeia and had similar issues finding NGC 457. It did cross my mind that the bright moon may be making finding these clusters more difficult. M31 came next, an easy spot but still fainter than I was expecting which backed up my thoughts on the moon's brightness impacting the viewing. After that I found the double cluster. It took a second or two before I realised what I'd found. A really nice site in the binoculars. For a bit of a challenge, I went after Uranus. With a bit of help from SkySafari, I was able to confirm a siting of Uranus through the bins. I was very pleased with this. I really enjoy the speed that I can move around the sky with the binoculars. It's also find that seeing the different colours of stars is much easier when viewed over a larger field of view. This was one of the things that occurred to me as I finished up on the Hyades cluster. 

It was time to come in for a warm up and have some tea. After that, I'll be back outside for more stargazing  

Great report. Sounds like you had a super time. I got a copy of the moon atlas. Been glancing through it and I definitely think it will enhance my observing. I'm going for the lunar 100 this year.  

[Littleguy80]

Back inside for a warm up. After filling up on Christmas pudding, brandy sauce and mulled wine, I went back out around 9pm. Started on the telescope and Orion at low power. I'm still trying to get the E star in the Trapezium so following some advice on here, I went to Rigel to try and split that. At 180x I couldn't see the secondary. I tried increasing the mag further but still nothing then. Now I went the other way and dropped to 150x with the 6mm BGO and there it was! Great! Sticking with the 6mm, I targeted the Trapezium. A couple of times, with averted vision, I thought the E star popped into sight but it was fleeting. Not good enough for me to feel like I'd seen it. I still felt satisfied with the  progress made though.

I got the bins out and had a look at Orion. It was refreshing to see this region with a large field of view after being at high power with the scope. Next I returned to Auriga. With the moon further around and Auriga higher in the sky, I managed to find M37! After that, I was then able to find M36 and then M38. Really chuffed. Another look for NGC 457 in Cassiopeia but no joy. I kept wandering over to the double cluster while searching. Such a great sight. Changing direction, I sought out the Beehive, M44, in cancer. Another large open cluster that really shines in binoculars. 

I decided to have a look at the Eskimo planetary nebula. At low power, in the scope, I spotted the Eskimo easily through the blinking effect. I think this was probably my best view of this planetary, the nebulosity was very clear with the central star seen with direct vision. The 6mm BGO was again the star performer. I did try it with the UHC filter but preferred the view without.  

After failing with the binoculars to see NGC 457, it was time to turn the scope on it. I quickly found the Owl cluster. I'd forgotten that stars beyond the "eyes" are quite faint. This probably explains the failure with the bins. A quick viewing of Caroline's rose. I had to increase the magnification to 75x to be able to see this clearly. Not my best view of this cluster but nice none the less.

Sirius was now fairly well up so I got the bins out to see if I could see M46/M47 above the roof line. I spotted M47 pretty easily so moved the scope onto it. After enjoying the brighter M47, I went on to M46. It was much fainter than I recalled. With the UHC filter in I could just about make out the planetary nebula within M46. It was a a disappointing view compared to previous viewings of M46 I've had.

Another round of viewing with the bins. I returned to M31, looking better than earlier but still a bit washed out. Over in Ursa Major, I took a shot at M51 and found it! I really didn't expect to see the Whirlpool galaxy but there it was. Faint as you would expect but a good result for the bins. Next was a seasonal look at the Christmas tree cluster. It was now 11:30pm so I decided to come in for a cuppa, a warm and "quick" post on SGL  

[Littleguy80]

Did pop out for a little bit longer but not too much more to report. Some nice views of the Beehive and M67 in the bins. Was good to see Leo rising up higher in the sky. Looking forward to some galaxy hunting soon  

[Special K]

That’s great you got out there after all the rotten weather!  There must have been a lot of scopes under every tree to cause this much bad weather!  

Bins are great and always surprise me how revealing and enjoyable it can be. The color of Mars is magnificent at 10x. Try those clusters in Auriga without the moon and it should be fine.  M38 on the side of the smiling Cheshire Cat is easy to find. 

We need a comet soon to train the binoculars on!!!

[Astro Imp]

Hi Neil,

Some great reports, good to hear you're enjoying the new toys.

I'm not surprised you struggled with M37 in the bins, I was looking with the scope last night and found it very faint. 

Like you I started ignoring the moon but came to realise there was plenty to see and it seemed silly to waste the few clear nights we get, the Lunar 100 really got me going on the moon.

Have a good new year and let's hope for more clear nights.

[alanjgreen]

Nice one Neil. I am also new to binos and I am on the same learning curve as you.

They are certainly easier to use than a telescope and the freedom to fly around the sky is refreshing too.

Good to hear you had an early am session. It's the best time of the day in my opinion, I love being out when everyone else is asleep. It's so peaceful (you can understand why our pets prefer to sleep all day and wait for nighttime too)  

Alan

[cloudsweeper]

Excellent, Neil - glad you had an enjoyable session!

No clouds for a change y'day evening, and I briefly spotted a big, bright D-shaped thing plus several tiny sparkly ones, so was keen to investigate further, but a streaming cold forbade it.  Things can only get better!

Doug.

 

[Littleguy80]

13 hours ago, Special K said:

That’s great you got out there after all the rotten weather!  There must have been a lot of scopes under every tree to cause this much bad weather!  

Bins are great and always surprise me how revealing and enjoyable it can be. The color of Mars is magnificent at 10x. Try those clusters in Auriga without the moon and it should be fine.  M38 on the side of the smiling Cheshire Cat is easy to find. 

We need a comet soon to train the binoculars on!!!

Thank you! Managed to get those Auriga clusters later on in the evening. Really enjoying the bins. My wife was amused to find me laying flat on the ground looking up with them ? Would be awesome to have a comet visible to binoculars!

[Littleguy80]

11 hours ago, Astro Imp said:

Hi Neil,

Some great reports, good to hear you're enjoying the new toys.

I'm not surprised you struggled with M37 in the bins, I was looking with the scope last night and found it very faint. 

Like you I started ignoring the moon but came to realise there was plenty to see and it seemed silly to waste the few clear nights we get, the Lunar 100 really got me going on the moon.

Have a good new year and let's hope for more clear nights.

Thanks Alan. The binoculars are quite a different experience to the scope. Alternating between the two really added to the fun last night. 

I actually find myself looking forward to time with the moon now which is great

Have a great new year! I’ll be keeping my fingers crossed that you have better luck with the clear skies in 2018!

[Littleguy80]

10 hours ago, alanjgreen said:

Nice one Neil. I am also new to binos and I am on the same learning curve as you.

They are certainly easier to use than a telescope and the freedom to fly around the sky is refreshing too.

Good to hear you had an early am session. It's the best time of the day in my opinion, I love being out when everyone else is asleep. It's so peaceful (you can understand why our pets prefer to sleep all day and wait for nighttime too)  

Alan

Thank you, Alan. I think refreshing is exactly the word I’d use. I think the freedom to move around will allow some extra sessions when cloud dodging is required. I just can’t get onto objects quickly enough with the scope on these nights. 

This was only my second Dawn session. Really enjoyed it. Sets you up for the day in a nice relaxing way  

[Littleguy80]

9 hours ago, cloudsweeper said:

Excellent, Neil - glad you had an enjoyable session!

No clouds for a change y'day evening, and I briefly spotted a big, bright D-shaped thing plus several tiny sparkly ones, so was keen to investigate further, but a streaming cold forbade it.  Things can only get better!

Doug.

 

Thanks Doug. Sorry to hear you’re not well. Hope you can shake it soon to investigate the D shaped object. I’m curious to hear what it is now  

[Hayduke27]

I just recently acquired that same moon atlas, and like you, I hope to make better use of the moon this year than just trying to avoid it like the plague.

 

I always take my binos out with me, even when I plan on pretty much using the scope exclusively.  As you said, the binoculars are a wonderful way to move around the sky a lot faster, plus with the wider FOV you see so much.  I do love zooming in for the details that the scope reveals, but it's hard to beat the binos for ease of exploring the sky.  Not to mention there is no setting up!

 

Great report, sounds like you're having fun with your new toys!

[Littleguy80]

43 minutes ago, Hayduke27 said:

I just recently acquired that same moon atlas, and like you, I hope to make better use of the moon this year than just trying to avoid it like the plague.

 

I always take my binos out with me, even when I plan on pretty much using the scope exclusively.  As you said, the binoculars are a wonderful way to move around the sky a lot faster, plus with the wider FOV you see so much.  I do love zooming in for the details that the scope reveals, but it's hard to beat the binos for ease of exploring the sky.  Not to mention there is no setting up!

 

Great report, sounds like you're having fun with your new toys!

Thanks Alex. I completely agree. You really want the combination of the binos and scope when you’re out. They’re such different experiences that it keeps you feeling fresh as swap between the two while out

[Knighty2112]

Nice report Neil, and nice prezzies too. I have the same moon atlas, and it works a charm to observing the moon with. Have fun with the new toys!  

[Littleguy80]

47 minutes ago, Knighty2112 said:

Nice report Neil, and nice prezzies too. I have the same moon atlas, and it works a charm to observing the moon with. Have fun with the new toys!  

Thanks, Gus! Really impressed with the bins and the atlas! Both add another dimension to the hobby