In a Galaxy Far Far Away...

[josefk]

With a few days off work this week I was relieved and excited that "clear outside" predicted a nice clear window last night in South Lincolnshire/NE Northamptonshire and the prediction was accurate. I grabbed the opportunity with both hands to view a few more Messiers (mostly).

The observation site is Fineshade Woods (Northampton) supposedly Bortle4 and 21.04. I haven't practised NELM estimations yet so the prediction for sky quality will have to do. Observations in order:

Regulus (Alpha Leonis). Really just waiting for my kit to cool down and having a look for Leo I. I didn't find it.

M3 (Globular Cluster). Sky not yet fully dark (22:10) but still moderately resolved with direct vision. Resolved better with averted vision. Framed beautifully at 140x/30'

M5 (Globular Cluster). Not as large or as well resolved as M3. Even gradient of brightening from edge to core.

M13 (Hercules Cluster). Just stunning. Lovely at 80x/60' and even better at 140x/30'. Came back to this for a long look at the end of the session.

M40 (Optical Double star). Uninspiring. 

M44 (Beehive Cluster). Fabulous. I can't fit this in my main scope (63' max TFOV) but its lovely nonetheless. Also observed through tripod mounted 15x/270' TFOV binoculars and the view was by far superior at this scale.

M49 (Elliptical Galaxy). Looked like a fish shaped comet at the EP. observed at 80x/60' and 140x/30' and better at the higher magnification.

M51 (Whirlpool Galaxy). Crudely sketched as a leaning "snowman" before looking it up so seen correctly with NGC 5195. I came back here at the end of the night when it was higher but still didn't see any real structure. Obvious bright cores and obvious nebulosity but no more.

M53 (Globular Cluster). Revisited after first light here a few weeks ago. Much better resolved on this viewing. "unpacked" with averted vision but then i could see it resolved even with direct vision.

M56 (Globular Cluster). Compact and quite dim. No bright core.

M60 (Elliptical Galaxy). Observed and checked (and double checked) for correct ID in adjacency to M58 and M59 by stepping across all three galaxies in turn east and west and west and east. NGC 4647 seen with M60 as extended nebulosity of it and basically "attached" to it.

M58 (Spiral Galaxy). With M60 above. No question it was there but a very faint small wisp at 140x/30'.

M59 (Elliptical Galaxy). With M58 and M60 above. Very faint.

NGC 4636 (Elliptical Galaxy). Very faint. Identified as the "corner" DSO object in an "L" shaped arrangement of 4 stars.

NGC 4638 (Galaxy). Very faint.

NGC 4637 (Spiral Galaxy). Super super faint. In theory at the edge of possibility for my scope at Magnitude 14.89 but i'm sure of myself for seeing it. Definitely the smallest dimmest thing this evening.

M108 (Spiral Galaxy). faint but shape and orientation correctly determined before recording it in sky safari (i.e before looking up what i should be able to see).

M109 (Spiral Galaxy). Very faint, nearly imaginary lightening of the sky. Sat about 3' or 4' above two brighter stars themselves about 3' apart.

M106 (Spiral Galaxy). Faint but with averted vision i could certainly "see" the core and maybe detect a hint of structure.

M97 (Owl Nebula). Quite large (3'?) but quite dim "fingerprint". Quite tired by this point in the evening so guilty of not lingering and not taking time to fully appreciate this one. Reminded me a bit of when you get a drop of water on a binocular objective. THAT faint.

M94 (Spiral Galaxy). Brighter than everything seen in the last hour (M108, M109, M106, & M97) with an obvious core but no structure.

M92 (Globular Cluster). An absolute delight to come to a Globular Cluster after the faint fuzzies above. Beautifully resolved even with direct vision. I will come back to this earlier in another night an attempt a sketch.

M63 (Sunflower Galaxy). observing notes: "smudge near two bright stars, no core no structure"

M51. Return after being here earlier in the evening. Interesting because though the sky was darker i'm not sure i saw more. i wonder if tiredness cancelled the "in theory" better seeing conditions?

M14. Completely unresolved Globular Cluster. Like the Owl Nebula bizarrely (?!?).

M13. Finishing the night on a high. What a super thing to look at. With direct vision the brightness seams evenly "dense" across the cluster with perhaps a hint of nebulosity (blur) in the core. With averted vision just billions of resolved stars. Fantastic. View kept getting better and better with repeated drifts across the EP.

 

Kit used: 8" GSO (StellaLyra) Classical Cassegrain. Nexus DSC. Sky Safari for note taking. Everything observed at 140x/30' with a few things either "found" or re-framed at 80x/60'. SLC 15x56 Binoculars used to stand back on the Beehive.

Lessons learned: Take a flask. Attempt fewer objects. Wear warmer clothes :-). Work out how to take notes without damaging dark adaptation.

Cheers all.

 

 

 

[Starwatcher2001]

Very nice report josefk and enjoyable to read. Thanks.

Regarding the taking of notes and dark adaption - I use a dictaphone and then write up my observations later in the warmth, when I can also check some of the facts and stats about what I've seen.

[OK Apricot]

A hell of a session that! Managed a few great targets and glad you've had an improved view of some of them. Note taking for me is done on my phone with a ridiculously faint screen 🤣

Edited May 5, 2022 by OK Apricot
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[josefk]

Thanks @OK Apricot and @Starwatcher2001  I think with the phone screen thing what I hadn’t appreciated was that I should keep adjusting the brightness down as the night goes on till it is very dull indeed. I’m also going to try the “pirate patch” trick recommended on here as I always use the same eye at the EP. Maybe cloud free tonight as well to practise at least the first one. 

cheers

Joe

[callisto]

Great session, I enjoyed reading that,

Thanks for sharing 👍

[Kon]

Great session and great set of targets.

[Ags]

M97 is faint. It took 14 years of trying to see it before I finally found it. It took a trip to La Palma to get skies dark enough, but just 66 mm was enough aperture.

[josefk]

22 minutes ago, Ags said:

M97 is faint. It took 14 years of trying to see it before I finally found it. It took a trip to La Palma to get skies dark enough, but just 66 mm was enough aperture.

Now you make me feel really bad for rushing 😉 . I’m using “push to” so I take no credit for finding it. I will definitely come back to this a few times to see if I can see any kind of structure/features and on another night will come to this earlier in a session when not so tired. 
 

I’m thinking about a big exit pupil EP focal length for filters on this kind of object too but will learn to walk before I run as were.  Probably the opposite direction of travel than taking a 66mm scope to very dark skies like La Palma!  

 

cheers

[Simon Pepper]

Reading this I wonder if all this imaging I am doing I miss the visual side to this hobby! I really need to sort this. Thanks for sharing!

[Pixies]

Good list - you must have been knackered!

I find with the springtime faint galaxies, it can be a case of seen something... next! Other object types deserve longer observing times, though.

Tight double-stars, planets, etc. these benefit from time at the eyepiece. Just wait until later this year when you've had your eye on Mars continuously for 20 minutes, waiting for moments of good seeing!

[josefk]

@Pixies I am knackered but also trying to make the most of not being at work the next day! i'm looking forward to the planets being back in the evening especially so as I have missed any morning possibilities so far this spring.

[josefk]

Righto - round two this week at Fineshade Woods Northamptonshire. This second consecutive night out wasn't as long or as enjoyable as the first last night (3hrs versus 5 and half or so last night). Tired eyes? Brighter moon? Definitely quantifiable less ability to see fainter objects at around 10/11th Magnitude. Though the sky looked clear and blue to the naked eye (and i could see the 6th magnitude double double with naked eye at the end of the session) the sky through the telescope developed from a slate grey in the first part of the session to a dull grey/brown later on. Plan was for a few month of May Hershel objects from Steve O'Meara's Observing Guide but i ended up all over the place:

Epsilon1 Lyrae and Epsilon2 Lyrae - Double Double - split while waiting for true darkness (which never arrived). Drew it properly for orientation of the splits but not completely straightforward finding best focus then waiting for the scope to settle. This was early so it wasn't very high up - maybe 30 degrees? In any event it wasn't more straightforward later in the night when i came back to see if it was easier when higher and darker.

93 Leonis - (still waiting for true darkness) wasn't exactly sure what i was looking at here so drew the EP view and indeed it was the easy split with "blueish" dimmer secondary separated from the "yellow/white" primary with the secondary just over 1' away to the north. Saw the other "double pairs" array in a kind of ladder south to north hence the confusion for 93 Leonis itself.

NGC 4643 (H I-10). at the edge of seeing. Sketched what i saw which is a good job because i probably didn't see it! Could quite easily have been actually looking at the bigger if not brighter NGC 4536 nearby. That would be 2 degrees of finding error so will need to come back.

M104 (H I-43) the Sombrero Galaxy. A pity i knew what to expect to see because it would be easy to imagine seeing it. I saw it and drew it with a brighter larger half above a dark lane and then the smaller dimmer half below that as part of an overall mildly rugby ball shape with  brighter emphasis to one side. 

NGC 4147 (H I-19). A Globular Cluster but it was very difficult to perceive it as such. The sky already (23:30) turning a dull grey/brown. Moonshine strong enough to cast shadows on the ground.

M65/M66. Faint fuzzies in this seeing. Seen together. I'm slightly embarrassed writing this because last night i didn't appreciate i was looking at 2/3 of the Leo triplet so didn't look for (and therefore didn't see) the nearby dimmer NGC 3628. 

M95. Faint fuzzy in tonights sky - observing note "I can tell its there but i'm not "ticking it" on this viewing"

M96. Though brighter and more distinct than M95 this was also a faint fuzzy in tonights sky.

M105 (H I-17). No pleasure in it because the sky just wasn't dark or clear enough. Seen with NGC 3384 (H I-18) easily and obviously enough but no sign of nearby NGC 3389 at 11th Magnitude so i suspect that was the seeing limit for me tonight.

M27 The Dumbell Nebula. Seen as a fingertip fingerprint type mark in a kind of potato or "pinched" peanut shape. Dimmer than the Owl Nebula seen yesterday but i don't know if that is absolutely true or is about sky condition tonight.

M29 (Open Cluster). Not jewel like at all against this sky so will come back another time.

M3 (Globular Cluster). A return visit for the second night. Bizarrely in my notes i seem to have seen this better tonight than last night. Contrary to what i would expect.

So seeing for whatever reason (and i don't discount tiredness) a little bit disappointing but valuable experience re. adjusting to what can be found. I struck out early on with NGC 4293, 4294, 4295, 4296, 4297, 4298, 4299, and 3628.  After the fact i appreciate where the seeing limit was and at least one of those DSO was laughably beyond reach.

Plenty of coffee in order today.

Cheers 

Joe

 

 

 

[Paz]

I learned the same lesson about having fewer targets on my list, the more observing I do the smaller my target lists get!

Regarding how to take notes without ruining dark adaptation I use a fairly old school dictaphone. It has a tiny red light that tells me if it is recording and, a big easy button to start/stop. I can then write up my notes later.