What did you see tonight?

[Mark at Beaufort]

I never started until 9.45pm because of the local school's floodlights so I just set up the Skywatcher 150P.

I started with the Monkey Head Neb using the 20mm Myraid and Castell O-III filter. This was followed by M35 + NGC2158, Christmas Tree Neb, Rosette Neb. I then switched to the 13mm Ethos and Viewed M47 and  M46  taking in the PN 2438 (using TeleVue filter). Still with Ethos viewed M38, M36 and M37, M1 and then fitted a H.Beta filter to try and see the California Neb with the ES68 24mm (failed). It was interesting to then view M42 still with the H.Beta - nice to try different filters on M42.

Before going into Leo I observed M44 and M67. Quick tour of Leo viewing NGC2903 and then the Triplets although I could not see NGC3628.

Ended the night in Ursa Major- M51, M82+M81 (great in 9mm Myraid), M108 and finally the Owl Neb (trying both TeleVue and Atronomik O-III).

[PeterC65]

First time with the new WO Binoviewer (with 20mm 60° eyepieces) and the Skymax 127 last night.

The view of M42 was amazing, I could see the wings, their shape, the shape of the cloud structure around the centre, and I could easily make out four stars in the Trapezium (I’ve never seen more than four). The focus point for the Binoviewer is quite a way from the normal eyepiece focus point so I centred on M42 first with the ES 24mm then found focus with the Binoviewer. Usually M42 looks better with the UHC filter but with the Binoviewer I’d say it looked better with just the Neodymium filter.

The thing I liked most about the Binoviewer is how much more relaxing it is on the eyes. I could have gazed at the same object for an hour or more without tiring. They give a very immersive experience, better I’d say than a wider angled single eyepiece.

The AZ GOTO mount was particularly well aligned last night, using Aldebaran and Procyon, 50° and 40° altitude respectively and 65° azimuth separation, so finding targets was very easy.

M78 – I could just make out the nebulosity with the ES 14mm.

SAO 132444 Alnitak – the brightest star in Orion’s Belt, I could see some slight nebulosity with the ES 24mm and with the Binoviewer.

NGC 2244 – with the ES 24mm and the UHC filter I could see the bright star cluster and some slight nebulosity.

NGC 2175 – with the ES 24mm and the UHC filter I could see a bright star surrounded by a very faint but quite large disc of nebulosity which moved as the scope was slewed.

NGC 1514 – first time for this Planetary Nebula, with the ES 14mm I could just make out that the middle one of three stars was something more, then the UHC filter brought out a small blob of nebulosity which was just visible with averted vision.

M81 – I had a very quick look at M81 with the ES 14mm, it looks better with its companion M82 through the refractor.

M65 / M66 / NGC 3628 Leo Triplet – first time for these too, all three just fitted into the field of view of the ES 24mm, I could see a grey smudge around M65 (or was it M66?) but the other two were just points that I could just about persuade myself might be galaxies.

M35 – took a quick look at M42 again with the Binoviewer but it was only just above the trees by now so I switched to M35 instead which looked great and filled the whole field of view.

 

[SuburbanMak]

2 minutes ago, PeterC65 said:

First time with the new WO Binoviewer (with 20mm 60° eyepieces) and the Skymax 127 last night.

The view of M42 was amazing, I could see the wings, their shape, the shape of the cloud structure around the centre, and I could easily make out four stars in the Trapezium (I’ve never seen more than four). The focus point for the Binoviewer is quite a way from the normal eyepiece focus point so I centred on M42 first with the ES 24mm then found focus with the Binoviewer. Usually M42 looks better with the UHC filter but with the Binoviewer I’d say it looked better with just the Neodymium filter.

The thing I liked most about the Binoviewer is how much more relaxing it is on the eyes. I could have gazed at the same object for an hour or more without tiring. They give a very immersive experience, better I’d say than a wider angled single eyepiece.

The AZ GOTO mount was particularly well aligned last night, using Aldebaran and Procyon, 50° and 40° altitude respectively and 65° azimuth separation, so finding targets was very easy.

M78 – I could just make out the nebulosity with the ES 14mm.

SAO 132444 Alnitak – the brightest star in Orion’s Belt, I could see some slight nebulosity with the ES 24mm and with the Binoviewer.

NGC 2244 – with the ES 24mm and the UHC filter I could see the bright star cluster and some slight nebulosity.

NGC 2175 – with the ES 24mm and the UHC filter I could see a bright star surrounded by a very faint but quite large disc of nebulosity which moved as the scope was slewed.

NGC 1514 – first time for this Planetary Nebula, with the ES 14mm I could just make out that the middle one of three stars was something more, then the UHC filter brought out a small blob of nebulosity which was just visible with averted vision.

M81 – I had a very quick look at M81 with the ES 14mm, it looks better with its companion M82 through the refractor.

M65 / M66 / NGC 3628 Leo Triplet – first time for these too, all three just fitted into the field of view of the ES 24mm, I could see a grey smudge around M65 (or was it M66?) but the other two were just points that I could just about persuade myself might be galaxies.

M35 – took a quick look at M42 again with the Binoviewer but it was only just above the trees by now so I switched to M35 instead which looked great and filled the whole field of view.

 

Excellent report - so does the binoviewer reach focus in the Mak without any extensions or adapters? 

[wulfrun]

First time out in a while due to the weather. I popped out for a couple of hours with the Virtuoso 114P. Didn't put anything larger out as the chilly wind made me unsure how long I'd cope!

I spent most of the time spotting clusters, some old and some new-to-me - all taken from "tonight's best" in Synscan app. Pleiades, Hyades, starfish, wild duck, double cluster, spiral cluster and 37-cluster (I really can't "get" the 37 in it!) were all attempted and a couple were failed on with the small aperture/LP.

Needless to say, I had a good look at the ever-irresistible M42 Orion nebula, had a stare at what little I can see in my local LP of the Andromeda galaxy and then tried Bode's (M81) and Cigar (M82) galaxies - I just detected the former (unexpectedly) but no hint of the latter. Having the newly-added go-to I tried my luck on the Leo triplet but I've failed to see them in the 150 so wasn't surprised to fail again. Probably too early in the night/year anyway but nothing ventured etc.

Came in pretty cold but happy that the go-to functionality allows me to find faint stuff that I can't find without a scope, so a worthwhile addition.

[Geoff Barnes]

A warm still evening, 22 degrees at 9pm and great seeing gave the 12 inch Dob a chance to show what it can do when conditions are optimum. I always start with the Baader zoom and kept it in the whole session this time. 

There are not many nights when Sirius B (the pup) can be seen without any effort with direct vision but tonight was one of then, it was very conveniently positioned between the diffraction spikes and was as clear and bright as I've ever seen it at 175x.

Likewise E and F in the Trapezium were easily seen directly at 175x.

The 37 cluster always fun to see with the double at top right corner of the 3 nice and clear. 

The triple of Beta Mons cleanly split as was 32 Orionis, the first time I've looked for this tight pair this season. 

Finished with a quick look at a few of the southern clusters in Carina and Centaurus which are just starting to clear the tree tops at last before beating a hasty retreat from the darned mossies before I lost too much blood. 

All in all very satisfying session!  😀

 

 

 

[wulfrun]

30 minutes ago, Geoff Barnes said:

A warm still evening, 22 degrees at 9pm and great seeing...

Not even vaguely jealous over here are we? 😉

[PeterC65]

1 hour ago, SuburbanMak said:

Excellent report - so does the binoviewer reach focus in the Mak without any extensions or adapters? 

Yes the Binoviewer can easily reach focus in the Mak with no Barlow, with the x1.6 WO Barlow that comes with the set, with my Baader Hyperion x2.25 Barlow, and even with both Barlows together. With no Barlow and with the x1.6 Barlow the focus position is about three full turns of the focus knob away from the usual single eyepiece focus point but that's still only about one tenth of the maximum focus travel of the Mak!

On my refractor, with a 1.25" diagonal and a filter wheel, I can only get focus with the x2.25 Barlow (or both Barlows). I could probably just get focus with the diagonal alone and the x1.6 Barlow.

 

[F15Rules]

Lovely night here again, great seeing and good transparency.. but breezy!!

Last night with the FS128 was great but I have to say the past 20 minutes have been something else.. I decided to get the vintage 1980s Vixen SP102 F10 achromat out..

Seeing here is excellent despite the strong breeze, but I got a sheltered spot out of the wind...and I'VE JUST SEEN THE PUP WITH THE SP102!!😱😱

I'm using  a 6mm BGO with 1.6x Barlow and moon filter (x266) .. I can clearly see two Fresnel rings around Sirius and the Pup is between 12noon and 1pm.

Am delighted with the old girl!!😁👍

Dave

[Franklin]

8 minutes ago, F15Rules said:

I'VE JUST SEEN THE PUP WITH THE SP102!!😱😱

Wow, that's impressive Dave. Just goes to show the excellent figure on those old japanese achros. Mind you, I expect it helps having the objective the correct way around 🤣.

[Saganite]

1 hour ago, F15Rules said:

Lovely night here again, great seeing and good transparency.. but breezy!!

Last night with the FS128 was great but I have to say the past 20 minutes have been something else.. I decided to get the vintage 1980s Vixen SP102 F10 achromat out..

Seeing here is excellent despite the strong breeze, but I got a sheltered spot out of the wind...and I'VE JUST SEEN THE PUP WITH THE SP102!!😱😱

I'm using  a 6mm BGO with 1.6x Barlow and moon filter (x266) .. I can clearly see two Fresnel rings around Sirius and the Pup is between 12noon and 1pm.

Am delighted with the old girl!!😁👍

Dave

Great result Dave !

I had a  very long session last night so was not going to go out tonight, but your success has tempted me out again.  The  conditions for me tonight though  are not as favourable unfortunately, so a quick split of Theta Aurigae and a good look at the beautiful Cluster M37, and that is enough, besides there are quite regular gusts of wind which is spoiling things somewhat.

Enjoy !

Edited February 23, 2022 by Saganite

[MalcolmM]

@F15Rules that's great to see the pup with a 4". That's a gorgeous looking scope! I've tried a number of times with a 4" but never seen it. 

I'm raging! Clear skies at home for first time in ages, looked out the window and saw Orion just like in @F15Rules picture, I've a new Berlebach tripod and Vixen AP mount to play with, even though they supposedly 'came with clouds' , and I've done my back in! Can't even lift the little 60CB out

Malcolm

[Kon]

I got the Dob out and although the sky is clear, transparency is awful. M42 looks alright, no colours tonight just grey and stars not pinpoint sharp. I hope seeing might improve for some Leo galaxies later.

[Franklin]

21 hours ago, MalcolmM said:

I've a new Berlebach tripod and Vixen AP mount to play with

How are you finding the AP? Very smart and quite unique IMO.

[Ludd]

Ah, my first proper view of M42 through the 17.5” dob and the colour is gorgeous - jade and burgundy!  Also M51, a bit low in the east still but worth a quick glimpse.  Didn’t try for the Pup.  Now packed up, as I can see it is not really very clear and I have work in the morning, so just doing a few wide field shots with a 28mm lens.  Two brilliant orange meteors just now. 

[MalcolmM]

1 hour ago, Franklin said:

How are you finding the AP? Very smart and quite unique IMO.

I have only managed to set it up inside so have not used it in anger yet! I have wanted one of these for over a year. It's fantastic looking runs off AA batteries, does not have goto, is light, is very quiet ... what's not like  I can't wait to get it outside; it's clear again tonight but my bad back is severely restricting my mobility! 

Malcolm

[Kon]

29 minutes ago, Ludd said:

Ah, my first proper view of M42 through the 17.5” dob and the colour is gorgeous - jade and burgundy!  Also M51, a bit low in the east still but worth a quick glimpse.  Didn’t try for the Pup.  Now packed up, as I can see it is not really very clear and I have work in the morning, so just doing a few wide field shots with a 28mm lens.  Two brilliant orange meteors just now. 

That sounds amazing and it must have been a sight! M42 with colours is an amazing experience (I have seen the colours in my 8" under very good transparency). Did you attempt the Flame or HH with your 17.5" yet?

[NeonSpectres]

Dug out my binoviewers (with 20mm Meade 4000 Plossl's) this evening, mainly hanging around M42. Also printed out tonight's sky chart (courtesy of Cartes du Ciel) so that I could map out the visible sky from my garden for future planning; aside from trees to the East I can pretty much see anything above 20 degrees everywhere else. Now I just have to re-familiarize myself with the constellations... 🤔

[Orange Smartie]

Two good nights in three days - what's going on?

I thought I'd make the most of the absence of moon to try for some new nebulae, as well as visiting some I've already seen.

NGC 1514 (Crystal Ball) in Taurus - found by going East from Zeta Persei and looking between a couple  of field stars. With my OIII filter, could easily spot a faint shell surrounding a brighter core.

NGC 1499 (California) - didn't expect to be able to see this, having read about the need for a dark site. As expected, nothing doing.

NGC2174 (Monkey Head) - at best I would say I could pick up hints of nebulosity (using OIII again) in a region with an open cluster (NGC 2175?).

Rosette Nebula - it's a biggie, so not easy to see the wood for the trees, but I fancied I could see some nebulosity around NGC 2244, with the appearance of darker patches or lanes just about there. 

M42 - using the OIII there was splendid contrast, especially near the centre and the extent of the nebula was really obvious using my filter.

NGC 2438 (planetary in Puppis) - with OIII again, a clear (but dim) disk within M46.

NGC 2359 (Thor's helmet) - a tricky find, eventually got to it by navigating from Sirius, East to Gamma CMa, to NGC 2360 (an open cluster), then moving North just past a loose group of stars. Nebulosity was visible but with very little detail (even with OIII).

NGC 2440 (Bat nebula) - a tricky find again - I went from M47, via 6 Puppis and triangulated with the brightest field stars west of 6 Puppis. A disk was clearly visible with OIII, but I didn't see anything else.

Also took a quick look at:

Clusters M41, M46, M47.

Galaxies M81/82, M51, M65/66.

Lastly, that beautiful thing, my fave double, h3945. And that concluded my session. Shame about the breeze and that the sky was really not as dark as I had hoped, but I'm grateful for the opportunity to get the scope out again.

 

Pete

[Ludd]

41 minutes ago, Kon said:

Did you attempt the Flame or HH with your 17.5" yet?

No, not yet, but if we get a really clear night in the next week or two I will give it a try.  Mind you, Orion is on its way out already.  

[Captain Scarlet]

Returning from local restaurant the sky was unexpectedly clear. So I donned cold-weather observing gear: dry robe, Sorel Arctic boots, gloves and 15x56 bins and by the time I got out, clouds had arrived grrr. A few gaps allowed views of Ursa Major, Ursa Minor, M51, Leo, Bootes and that was about it. The only good news was as soon as I’d got back in, I heard the sound of heavy rain on the windows!

Oh well some stars is better than no stars I guess!

M

Edited February 24, 2022 by Captain Scarlet

[cajen2]

A strange night for me. At first frustrating, as every time I was on or near a target, it would get covered by cloud so had to start again. Eventually, the cloud disappeared so I started aligning my RACI finder on M42. I'm also playing with my Rigel Quickfinder, trying to find a good place to put it.

Tried to find a few targets I haven't visited before, but again frustrating without the RQ.

Finally, I thought I'd try Castor, which is so high it's difficult to align on (must get a stand for my dob!). By this time, the seeing wasn't great but I managed all three visible stars easily enough.

[Kon]

I managed a few galaxies around Leo but transparency was awful. Triplet was nicer than the other night, M95/96/M105 and Markarian's chain (not as many visible galaxies as on a clear night). I gave up on trying anything in Ursa major.

[Stu]

A quick look around with my 10x50s that’s all tonight, planning on a longer session either tomorrow or Saturday when the forecast looks clear too.

Leo was high up when I looked whilst letting the dog out, and I found Cancer, something that was impossible back in Walton, and was please to see M44 with the naked eye quite easily. It looked great in the binos, and I found M67 too.

I had a try for the Leo triplet but that was a fail, as was M51, but M81/82 were easily found with my normal star hop and showed their distinctive shape.

I may pop the 16” out tomorrow night if it looks good!

[Mr Spock]

Howling gale and rain here 

[johninderby]

Wind amd rain here. 😕