Feasting on nebulas tonight!

[Kon]

At last some clear skies without the moon out. As you know I am after nebulas and tonight it did not disappoint. I started with M76 (Little Dumbbell Nebula) before it disappeared behind my neighbour's roof. Upon finding it I felt that warm feeling of excitement! I could make out an elongated shape with direct vision but with averted I could almost make out a darker area between the two halves. It looked great at both the 8 and 15 mm EPs, i think the 8mm was better since it made the surrounding sky a bit darker and the 'separation' more pronounced. I then moved to Cepheus and i tried for C4 (Iris Nebula). I think i saw a diffuse glow around the star but I felt underwhelmed after the M76. I moved to C9 (Cave Nebula) and without a filter I think there may have been some nebulosity. The whole area on my 25mm EP had a very light 'haziness' to it and moving along W the sky became darker again so it may have been C9? While I was in that area I looked for C11 (Bubble nebula) and the viewing was as in C9 (hazy that became darker as I moved along); while I was there the stars looked beautiful with loads of yellows and whites. I had a quick look on M52 cluster (it would have been rude not). I want to revisit the area once my filter has arrived. I then moved to Draco to look for the C6 (Cat's eye nebula). I found it pretty easily and it looked great; a small round fuzzy disk (I even got my wife out to take a look and she was also impressed). It really stood out in the dark surrounding (thus my disappointment on C4, i thought i would see something similar. I also showed her the M1 (Crab Nebula) and she was even more impressed. I had seen before but it looked nice on the 15 mm EP as a 'squashed' large disk.I finally tried to look for NGC 2261 but I just could not find it! I think after 2.5 hrs of viewing I was getting pretty cold and my eyes were refusing to focus or search any longer. Scope back in the sitting room warming up and me having a cup of tea and writing this report.

Overall an excellent night with many new targets. As the title says, it was a feast of nebulas for my eyes and mind! I wish my filter had arrived but FLO told me it should be with me this week, fingers crossed the weather will hold! I hope everybody else had great viewing.

Edited March 7, 2021 by Kon

[Epick Crom]

Well done Kon! Sounds like you saw some wonderful sights. Nebulae are always beautiful to look at👍

[Jiggy 67]

I’m with you Kon, planetary nebula are my most favorite object, they provide great satisfaction and beauty when when you bag them.

Im currently working through a list of 80 pn’s but having observed the easier ones they are beginning to get a lot more difficult! 😀

[Kon]

1 hour ago, Jiggy 67 said:

I’m with you Kon, planetary nebula are my most favorite object, they provide great satisfaction and beauty when when you bag them.

Im currently working through a list of 80 pn’s but having observed the easier ones they are beginning to get a lot more difficult!

Thanks. I find nebulas fascinating and waiting for the cloudless/moonless nights is exciting; plenty of time for planning/researching. I am new to the hobby so there are still a few easy ones for me to go through (plus waiting for spring and summer ones) but I agree some of them are hard to call. Do you mind sharing your list or is there a link?

[Jiggy 67]

Unfortunately I can’t share my list as it’s a spreadsheet which is half filled in by me with my obs sorry. There are lists available on SkySafari if you have it

[John]

Nice report

As Cygnus starts to get higher later in the year I'd recommend anyone who likes nebulae observing and with access to reasonably dark skies to get hold of a decent O-III filter (Astronomik or similar quality) and a low power / wide angle eyepiece in preparation to observe the Veil Nebula

Invest in a filter just for one target ?. Well an O-III has a marked effect on a number of targets but, IMHO, the views of the Veil with an O-III and under a reasonably dark sky are worth every penny of the investment

A UHC filter will help but an O-III is THE tool for the Veil.

This is just half of it !:

 

 

Edited March 8, 2021 by John

[Kon]

3 minutes ago, John said:

As Cygnus starts to get higher later in the year I'd recommend anyone who likes nebulae observing and with access to reasonably dark skies to get hold of a decent O-III filter (Astronomik or similar quality) and a low power / wide angle eyepiece in preparation to observe the Veil Nebula

Invest in a filter just for one target ?. Well an O-III has a marked effect on a number of targets but, IMHO, the views of the Veil with an O-III and under a reasonably dark sky are worth every penny of the investment

Based on our previous discussions I ordered the TV Bandmate II OIII filter, so eagerly waiting for its arrival. I will report on its performance once i have the chance to use it.

[Kon]

38 minutes ago, Jiggy 67 said:

Unfortunately I can’t share my list as it’s a spreadsheet which is half filled in by me with my obs sorry. There are lists available on SkySafari if you have it

No worries at all. I will look in SkySafari and some google searches.