Another galaxy night - with 12 inches of aperture this time

[John]

Another decently dark night here.

Got the 12 inch dob out. I've been hunting around Ursa Major initially. The list there is:

M 81 + M 82 (obligatory !)

NGC 3077

NGC 2978

NGC 2787

NGC 2885

M 97 - not a galaxy - the Owl nebula ! (no filter)

M 108

NGC 2841

NGC 3198

M 101 (just traces of this big face on galaxy)

M 51 + NGC 5195 (obligatory !)

Cor Caroli (lovely pair of stars)

M 63

Transparency OK but not the best perhaps. Good enough for things high-ish in the sky

Just been using the one eyepiece for this task - the ES 17mm / 92 degree monster. 94x magnification and a one degree true field:

Having a cuppa then out to hunt in Leo then Virgo / Coma

[Epick Crom]

Happy hunting John 😊

[Marki]

Reckon I need to move to John's part of the world. Clouds and more clouds up here.

Fantastic haul John!

[John]

Got the following in Leo so far (1 in Leo Minor really):

NGC 2903

3 of the Leo Quartet in the lions neck: NGC's 3190, 3193 and 3185.

NGC's 3226, 3227 a nice pair just behind Gamma Leonis (Algieba)

NGC 3344 (the one in Leo Minor)

Messiers 95 and 95

The bright, close pair of M 105 and NGC 3384

NGC's 3412, 3377 and 3367

The famous "Leo Triplet" of course, Messiers 65 and 66 and the Hamburger shaped NGC 3628

Near the star Chertan, NGC 3596 and then down below Iota Leonis for NGC 3705.

The sky is a bit milkier now. Can't seem to get galaxies much fainter than mag 11.5 (listed) but their surface brightness is somewhat less than that and some of these are "face ons" which are challenging.

Getting cold out there so I might not hold out for the Virgo / Coma groups to rise above the tree line tonight.

Enjoyed what I've had though

Edited March 8, 2021 by John

[Kon]

Excellent going! I got inspiration from your previous post and I did some quick viewing on Leo and Virgo! Amazing!

[Zermelo]

Exceptional night here, seeing and transparency both great.  Some low cloud passing over about 10 but cleared quickly.

With the dark sky (at last) I went for galaxies too. Tried M81/82 first as a sighter, and could see that it was looking promising. I saw NGC 3628 for the first time (with M65/66), and also first time for M105/NGC 3384. The most pleasing new find was M51. I could just about make out some structure in the disc, and the nucleus and that of NGC 5195 were both obvious. Added two new doubles (88 Leonis and HR4893), revisited Alkalurops and finished with M13, when my fingers started to numb and I had to call it a night.

[John]

I did have a quick look at the Markarian's Chain before packing up.

I counted at least 10 galaxies moving "down the line". Too cold and tired to be precise about the ID's though. I definitely got "The Face" and the "Eyes" plus the ones of mag 10-11 shown here:

Edited March 9, 2021 by John

[Barry-W-Fenner]

Great report John, admire your dedication. I hope to have your experience one day! I'm hopeless at galaxy hunting. Still not seen M81 & 82 Going to give them all ago this season with the 12" dob and 17.5mm morph.

I'm really looking forward to the doubles in Leo to.

 

[Stardaze]

Thanks for sharing those John, I'll save for when Leo is a little higher up next month, I couldn't stay up too late last night. I had an impromptu session as it cleared here too and transparency was the best its been for weeks. Leo was just about high enough when I packed away at 10, but the gear needed moving really.... next time....

[Orange Smartie]

Thanks for sharing this John.  I only managed a very short session, in between clouds, but got a few galaxies in my 6 inch dob.  Leo triplet and M81/82 were very easy. I also got a triplet west of the Leo triplet, arranged as an obtuse scalene triangle.  I think they were M95/96/105 - first time I'd seen these three.

Edited March 9, 2021 by Orange Smartie

[wibblefish]

Sounds like a great night, looking forward to the next scope night been a couple of weeks due to the cloud cover and unfortunately it looks like it might be another couple at the rate its going!
Will definitely have to try some of the brighter ones of these if they are in the right position  

Edited March 9, 2021 by wibblefish