Got it , at Last ☺

[Timebandit]

 

 

Well for you many DSO faint fuzzy hunter's out there ,this is probably no biggy. But for me a great find and put a smile on my face?

As you may or may not know i was a frac chap, and concentrated on planetary and lunar , with odd star cluster.

But all this changed about year or so ago when I wanted to expand the hobby to more DSO. And the purchase of the OOuk 14" followed to assist in this.

Unfortunately due to being by light pollution at home, then some of those faint fuzzy are so faint, that I cannot see them?

And due to the poor weather and a recent injury then lugging this monster around has been a bit off limits.

No matter how many times I have tried to locate the elusive M1 , then no joy. Direct vision no , many times tried adverted vision search in the area it was supposed to be in but no. It gets to the point you start to wonder does it really exist?

But due to a recent grab and go set up of then OOuk  8" newt , I am a bit more mobile and luckily had a bit more time recently from work commitments. So in the week I took myself off with a trip to a dark site, after going through my preference targets I decided to go a bit freestyle. 

After going to the area of Taurus mixed in with a sprinkling of other stars in the constellation. I did a sweep across the area with my favorite 20mm nagler in the eyepiece for this kind of task.                      Then without warning, their it was , no adverted vision ,no searching for ages thinking it does not exist, . A large grey light blob in the fov of the nagler. Just to make sure my eyes were not playing tricks on me. I moved the scope in and out of view of the fov of the eyepiece. Two or three times I moved in and out of the fov of the eyepiece. But every time I returned, their it still was. Unfortunately I did not have my star maps with me to confirm for sure it was M1 ,even though I suspect it was. I made a mental note of its location and shape, and would check with the books later.

Well back home my first real star map to me I purchased"turn left at Orion " was got out. And YES it was M1 ,the crab nebula. So happy that this has been located and seen with my own two eyes?

Well last night at home after a glass of wine or two, the Sky's seem to be in a reasonable state. And with the big 14" getting lonely from not being used for a while. I slid it out of the shed to see if I could eventually find M1 in light polluted Sky's at home. Using the same nagler 20mm I swept the area of the sky it should be at,but with no success at all with direct vision, again was M1 going to defeat me? I then patiently swept the area using averted vision. Still nothing? I went over the same area again with averted vision. Then from the corner of my eye ,there was a very very faint blurry blob of light being detected. I moved it in and out of the fov of the nagler just to make sure. But this incredibly very very faint blob of light was just visible by averted vision only. looking straight at it and it disappeared altogether. So M1 was located at home also, buy boy it is very faint and only just about visible with averted vision

 

It just shows that aperture is important, but sky conditions /darkness are more important IMO. The 8" at the dark site give up M1 easily and with direct vision. The 14" at the light polluted area give up M1 eventually, but with averted vision, and even then only just visible.

 

So at long last M1 had been located twice in one week and I am well happy ?

 

 

 

 

 

 

[rl]

I think these things are always easier the second time!...persistence pays!

You might find a filter helps on this one.

[Knighty2112]

Yep, M1 is a toughy unless you observe from good dark skies. Only seen it one once or twice myself. 

[Alan White]

Congratulations, making a find is such a rewarding moment.

I commiserate about Light Pollution, I like many others am blighted by this nuisance.
But I can also empathize about finding these fuzzies in a darker sky and then trying at home and just about finding.

Makes me laugh about you not having a dark sky as I come to Herefordshire form my dark sky fix, we have relatives near the Black Mountains.
I can see things in 10x50 binocular I cannot locate at home, then once found, I can sometimes find them again at home with my scopes, but not always.

That VX8 you bought is working well for you, very nice scope for size.
 

[Eastman]

Congratulations Timebandit,

The Crab nebula is challenging, but you've got it Mr Messier Nr1.

Dark skies really helps on this fuzzy blob.

It's also the story behind it that you got to seen it with your own eyes.

 

[scarp15]

Very well done with resolving M1 and now becoming accustomed to the placement. The first time I encountered M1 was from home, as you describe very faint, I was using an 8" SCT / Orion Ultra block filter. Could not agree more, it becomes a completely different circumstance when at a dark location. The last time I got to observe it, followed much harder observations such as B33, positioning the eyepiece, it leapt into view, bright, solid and defined with a fine texture not unlike a ball of cotton wool. I was also using an O111 filter which gains in contrast and definition. These vague observations from home, simply become alive at a dark site and an 8" scope can deliver impressive outcomes. 

[Paul73]

I like a good discovery thread! Congratulations!!

M1 is the Horse Head of light poluted sky! Somewhere between tough and invisible dependent on local conditions.

Paul

PS. In your 14” under dark sky it is big delicate and almost 3D.

[Astro Imp]

Brilliant!!! This is one difficult target from less than dark skies, it was only recently I saw this from my back garden, very faint and needed averted vision.

[Nyctimene]

On 18.2.2018 at 18:01, Paul73 said:

M1 is the Horse Head of light poluted sky

I've always thought, it's M 74.....;-)

Stephan

[Paul73]

16 minutes ago, Nyctimene said:

I've always thought, it's M 74.....;-)

Stephan

That is the Cone Nebula - ie. Don’t even bother trying unless you have dark dark sky and a telescope the size of a small car!!

M74 is one of those ones that, once you have got it, you’ll get it again and again.

I love the feeling when you bag one of those “Boggy” targets. Stephen’s Quintet is my long standing nemesis. Have possibly nearly seen it a few times.....

Paul

[Stu]

Nice one! M1 took me years to find, quite literally and in the end it was easy, once I tried under a dark sky. Same story as you!