Testing those rusty observing skills

[Littleguy80]

I've fallen out the habit of observing a bit. Partly due to weather and partly due to the general busyness of life plus enjoying other hobbies. That's not to say I've not been out at all but much less frequently. The clear forecast for last night had caught my eye. It was already pushing towards midnight by the time I got the 10" dob out, collimated it and aligned the finders. I used Betelgeuse for finder alignment. I remembered that there was a planetary nebula close by so I set off in search of NGC 2022. At low power I was initially struggling to spot it, most likely a combination of the scope still cooling and my eyes not yet being fully dark adapted. Soon though, I felt confident I had it. The 12.5mm eyepiece went in and things got clearer. The OIII filter made it much more prominent. The view through the 10mm Delos got my attention, the PN seemed to have a darker centre giving it a ring like appearance. The 5mm Pentax XW also showed this same structure. I hadn't expected it and spent sometime checking with averted vision that I wasn't imagining it. I felt confident of this observation so decided to check the SkySafari info and sure enough a ring structure is reported for this PN. I was so chuffed to have picked this feature out when I was expecting it. This inspired an observation of another PN, NGC 2371, in Gemini. I remembered this had an hour glass shape. The 5mm Pentax showed the top section to be brighter than the bottom.

The comets 67P and C/2019 L3 came up next. I've always been fascinated by the comets. 67P appeared to have a small tail. C/2019 L3 seemed much clearer and slightly smaller though the clarity may reflect my improving dark adaption. I followed the comets with the Eskimo nebula. I challenged myself to align the 5mm eyepiece (240x) using only the 9x50 finder and got it first time! The PN nebula was simply stunning, good transparency allowed it to glow through looking as clear as a beautifully drawn sketch.

Next came a small galaxy section. The Leo triplet squeezed into the FOV with NGC 3628 showing well even under my suburban skies. M51 was nice but not quite as good as I've seen it previously from home. I kept on with the bright galaxies, now observing M81 and M82, with the dark lane in M82 quite noticeable which was no doubt helped by it's favourable positioning. NGC 3077 close by was an easy pick and I surprised myself by also observing NGC 2976 which was larger and more diffuse in appearance than the other galaxies.

Tired eyes were telling me it was time to call it a night but I couldn't resist picking up M97, the Owl Nebula, and it's galactic partner M108. I even got the OIII filter out to pick out the eyes of the Owl. It was nice to feel all the old enthusiasm coming back through unexpected observations and little challenges to test my skills and memory. Astronomy is a hobby that I think I will always come back to.

[John]

Great report Neil

Sounds like you have picked the observing skills back up pretty quickly

[cloudsweeper]

Welcome back Neil, I'd noticed your absence lately!  I've been continuing with my passion for doubles, and seeking the Holy Grail of frac sharpness, aperture, and GoTo capability.  A lost cause, I fear!

Hope all's well with the family!

Cheers,

Doug.

[Littleguy80]

58 minutes ago, John said:

Great report Neil

Sounds like you have picked the observing skills back up pretty quickly

Thanks John 😊I guess Astronomy is like riding a bike. You never forget how!

[Littleguy80]

50 minutes ago, cloudsweeper said:

Welcome back Neil, I'd noticed your absence lately!  I've been continuing with my passion for doubles, and seeking the Holy Grail of frac sharpness, aperture, and GoTo capability.  A lost cause, I fear!

Hope all's well with the family!

Cheers,

Doug.

Thanks Doug. It seems like most of us go through quite spells. Life gets in the way as they say. Great to hear you’re still enjoying the doubles. I did take a look at Izar last night. Always a favourite 😊

Family are all doing well thank you. Growing up too fast. Next weekend sees us child number two become a teenager! Hope you guys are doing well too. 

[Stu]

Good to see you back Neil, a nice session you had there with some great objects.

I know what you mean about life getting in the way. A fair amount of my observing is quite superficial at the moment but I hope to get some more interesting sessions in soon.

Thanks for the report to help inspire this 👍

[Littleguy80]

11 minutes ago, Stu said:

Good to see you back Neil, a nice session you had there with some great objects.

I know what you mean about life getting in the way. A fair amount of my observing is quite superficial at the moment but I hope to get some more interesting sessions in soon.

Thanks for the report to help inspire this 👍

Thanks Stu. It’s tricky to fit everything in isn’t it? I have set my sights on getting some observing in even if it’s only grabbing a quick half hour. Even the superficial sessions can be great fun   

[Stu]

14 minutes ago, Littleguy80 said:

Even the superficial sessions can be great fun

Absolutely! They keep the interest and motivation going until time allows for more sophisticated observing. Totally agree!

[mikeDnight]

I think you'll probably find that many observers rarely set out to spend hours under the stars Neil. Chance would be a fine thing! Personally I normally go out with just 30 minutes in mind, sometimes less, and occasionally  (rarely) find myself still at the eyepiece two or three hours down the line. As long as I've had an enjoyable time, be it ten minutes or two hours, I'm happy and content. Having an easy to set up scope adds to the ease with which I can take advantage of clear spells.

[Littleguy80]

25 minutes ago, mikeDnight said:

I think you'll probably find that many observers rarely set out to spend hours under the stars Neil. Chance would be a fine thing! Personally I normally go out with just 30 minutes in mind, sometimes less, and occasionally  (rarely) find myself still at the eyepiece two or three hours down the line. As long as I've had an enjoyable time, be it ten minutes or two hours, I'm happy and content. Having an easy to set up scope adds to the ease with which I can take advantage of clear spells.

Thanks Mike. I think that’s spot on. I’ve definitely gotten more comfortable with shorter sessions in the past couple of years. Your Tak is perfect for just about any length of session  

[scarp15]

A good descriptive read and return back out with the 10" dob Neil, focused on an interesting selection of varied challenges. Familiarity as you say, like riding a bike, returns quite quickly. Was clear skies here on Saturday, but too risky to venture to a dark site with locally gusty high winds and prospects of fallen trees on the back roads and the yard is a building site, as we have roofers round at the moment.  Yet as you mention; its a hobby that you come back to, around everything else.  

[Littleguy80]

5 hours ago, scarp15 said:

A good descriptive read and return back out with the 10" dob Neil, focused on an interesting selection of varied challenges. Familiarity as you say, like riding a bike, returns quite quickly. Was clear skies here on Saturday, but too risky to venture to a dark site with locally gusty high winds and prospects of fallen trees on the back roads and the yard is a building site, as we have roofers round at the moment.  Yet as you mention; its a hobby that you come back to, around everything else.  

Thanks Iain. I wasn’t sure whether the wind was going to be an issue but was fine while I was out. Hope all goes well with the roofers. 

[Nyctimene]

Good to see you back on track again, Neil. I had to smile, as I read the description of your first target, the "Collarbone Nebula" in Orion's left shoulder - there's no rust in your skills at all! A really enjoyable read, that will, I hope, reactivate my own observing. The weather conditions here in SW Germany have been awfully bad during the last months; but I'm hoping for some clear spring nights filled with galaxies.

Stephan

[Littleguy80]

2 hours ago, Nyctimene said:

Good to see you back on track again, Neil. I had to smile, as I read the description of your first target, the "Collarbone Nebula" in Orion's left shoulder - there's no rust in your skills at all! A really enjoyable read, that will, I hope, reactivate my own observing. The weather conditions here in SW Germany have been awfully bad during the last months; but I'm hoping for some clear spring nights filled with galaxies.

Stephan

Thanks Stephan, that’s really kind of you to say so  I’d not heard of it being called the Collarbone nebula before, good name! The weather has definitely been a big factor in my lack of observing too. Just in from another fun session this evening though so things are looking up (pun intended). Like you, I’m really looking forward to those spring galaxies!

[wookie1965]

Great read Neil some cracking targets hopefully I can get out when we get any clear nights. 

[Littleguy80]

2 hours ago, wookie1965 said:

Great read Neil some cracking targets hopefully I can get out when we get any clear nights. 

Thanks Paul. Fingers crossed you can get out soon!

[F15Rules]

Great report Neil, and as many have already said, really nice to see your handle on an observing report again..always informative, varied and motivational 👍😊.

Dave

[Littleguy80]

7 hours ago, F15Rules said:

Great report Neil, and as many have already said, really nice to see your handle on an observing report again..always informative, varied and motivational 👍😊.

Dave

Thank you so much, Dave 😊I’m feeling much more motivated to get out observing and turn in some more reports!

[mapstar]

Lovely read Neil. I've struggled in the last two years with motivation myself and hopefully life Is turning a corner that I can again return to regular observing. 

I always remember my first views of ngc2371 in my 8" newt. It was a difficult find initially and very small. Think I'd overlooked it several times. Later with a memory of where it was , a better chart and the bigger scope it appeared easily and was a very pleasing view. Obviously much brighter with more detail.

Whilst in Gemini next time have a look at the medusa nebula. Much bigger than you'd expect 😉

 

[Littleguy80]

13 hours ago, mapstar said:

Lovely read Neil. I've struggled in the last two years with motivation myself and hopefully life Is turning a corner that I can again return to regular observing. 

I always remember my first views of ngc2371 in my 8" newt. It was a difficult find initially and very small. Think I'd overlooked it several times. Later with a memory of where it was , a better chart and the bigger scope it appeared easily and was a very pleasing view. Obviously much brighter with more detail.

Whilst in Gemini next time have a look at the medusa nebula. Much bigger than you'd expect 😉

 

Thanks Damian  I recall have a couple of failed attempts at the Medusa nebula a two or three years back. Time for another attempt with a low power eyepiece

Hope things are turning a corner and we see some reports from you soon  

[Sunshine]

Great report! I would say your observing skills haven't fallen off one bit.

[Littleguy80]

44 minutes ago, Sunshine said:

Great report! I would say your observing skills haven't fallen off one bit.

Thank you 😊 Looking forward to testing them further!

[Paz]

Nice report and a good haul of results. When I come back to observing after a break or use a set up I haven't used in a while I realise how many things I've forgotten and end up relearning!

[Littleguy80]

4 hours ago, Paz said:

Nice report and a good haul of results. When I come back to observing after a break or use a set up I haven't used in a while I realise how many things I've forgotten and end up relearning!

Thank you. I think that’s the nice side to taking a break, rediscovering these things. I’m sure it can sometimes mean you spot different features as you’re not trying to match up what you to what you expect to see.