TWO NEW DOUBLES IN TRIANGULUM

[cloudsweeper]

4.50pm Weds. - 8SE + Focal Reducer – aligned on Jupiter.

Sigma 219 - 8^th mag unmatched pair, 11.6 arcsec separation – a physical double, not in CDSA. Field sparse x36, except for bright “arrowhead” of stars close by. Got the split at x64 – clear, with fainter secondary at 7 o’clock.

Sigma 285 - 7^th and 8^th mags, 1.7 arcsec. Fairly sparse field at x36, but a line of three nearby stars helped with confirmation. Going straight to x191, I lost the target, so did it in stages: x91, x116, x191- possibly got the split, then on to x213 – very close, fainter star at 7 o’clock in moments of good seeing. Just to be sure, I went up to x256 and had no doubt about the split.

(Sigma 286 – a short hop from the above - should have been easier at 3.0 arcsec, but the sec was only 10^th mag and I believe the rising bright Moon nearby stymied the observation!)

Finished with M31 and the Double Cluster.

A satisfying and somewhat challenging 75 minutes.

Doug.