newbie deep sky objects

[cjh2007]

Hi, im hopefully gonna have a good session tonight with my new scope, what objects should i being going for? and what sort of magnification will they require? i know light pollution will play a part but just want a rough idea!

Thanks chris

[Casus belli]

With a 12" dob and dark skies the universe is yours. From my back yard in moderately dark skies I can see over 100 galaxies with a 10" dob.

Do not expect to see what you see in photos though. Im afraid the human eye works differently to a camera. Many galaxies that you'll see will be small fuzzy blobs.

Download stellarium Its free and easy to use. Its best to have at least a rough idea where things are as its a rather large universe out there.

stellarium.org

The ring nebula is the first deep sky object I spotted and still fills me with awe. M81 and M82 should be easy enough and will fit in the same fov with a 26mm ep. I find a 26mm ep suits me best for dso hunting. M57 is another nice target.

Good luck and if you dont see much dont give up. If its not properly dark you wont see much dso's.

[cjh2007]

Thanks alot, very helpfull

[mdstuart]

I actually find CNebulaX a good sky map, it has stars right down to about mag 14 and all the targets. I would suggest you start with the brighter galaxies such as M94/63/51 which are high up but also try some globular clusters such as M3. Locate then increase to a 6-9mm lens and look slightly to one side, and then shout WOW I can see hundreds of stars like silver dust.....

Of course then try M57 the ring thing which is pretty amazing, try to split the double double star in Lyra.

BUT first have a look at Saturn, how many moons can you see.

Mark

Mark

[Hipolito]

It depends on what views you have e.g. South, South-East, East ... etc.

I find it useful using a compass to help with navigation at times.

Stellarium is very useful for finding out what is going to be in the sky once you know which views are available to you.

Also, a pair of binos can help you to familiarise yourself with the night sky and identify objects before trying to focus on them with the scope.

[cjh2007]

Had a quick look at saturn lastnight, could easily see 3 moons then it moved behind the house!! my viewing point i can see north, east and south! west is behind the house!!! through my 32mm and 25 its looks so clear, tried my 9mm and found it really hard to keep up with it and it seemed abit hazy when trying to focus!!

[mdstuart]

Which three moons...Try tonight. The bright one near Saturn is Titan, on the same side should be Tethys and Dione and on the other side should be Rhea...

Mark

[albedo0.39]

Have a go at the owl nebula M97 in UMA. Looks a cracker. Also in the same constellation is M101.

for something a little harder, try the Blinking Nebula in CYG. I hope you find it quicker than I did !

Good luck with the light canon

[Alpha Prime]

How is your collimation?

[cjh2007]

collimation is holding very good, done it when i first got the scope and checked it everytime before i use it and its holding very well!

[Alpha Prime]

I can't get the collimation right, because it's too messy for me. But I might put in some more effort, or sell my own Skyliner 300p.

When your scope is collimated, how sharp are the views? Can you accurately distinguish features on say... Jupiter/Saturn? How many moons can you see?

[cjh2007]

to be honest i aint really studied planets to much as saturn goes out of my view about 11 and its still very light then! i had a look at quick look at jupiter yesterday morning around 3.30 and could easily see 5 moons and the banding on the planet! think i went to a 9mm eyepiece and was still very clear! From what ive viewed of saturn has been though a low mag piece! ill give it a good go when the skies start to get darker!! only had the scope for a couple of days and really impressed so far

[Alpha Prime]

Good on you!

I believe with a little luck you should be a ble to see a few more moons. Also, have you seen any globular cluster?

[cjh2007]

saw m13 lastnight, was amazing!! and m57 which was great, im new to all this so hav so much to learn!!

[ashenlight]

My personal favourites lately have been M13 and the double star in Cygnus, Alberio. Very rewarding finds

Amanda

[cjh2007]

Cheers Amanda, Thats another must find on the list!!

[mdstuart]

Try M81 and M82 tonight...I like these even more than M57 etc....

Hard to find but worth it..

Mark

[ashenlight]

I'm with Mark on M81 and M82 - fairly hard to find, but once you've got them, you can go back time and time again. Highly rewarding.

Amanda