25 July 2009

[beamer3.6m]

I managed to get out for a good few hours on 25 July 2009.

The skies were very cear and my kit was working well. I even managed to get PHD to guide via the QHY5 and C80ED.

I decided to concentrate on Ursa Major as I got a bit fed up with always looking south. I was in a different location from normal so light pollution was better and my view North was pretty much unrestricted.

I had forgotton my binoculars so only had the scopes but it was a great nice for both visual and astrophotography.

I started with a sweep of the area and it was clear that the viewing was good so I tried to home in on M51. Not strictly part of Ursa Major but close by so I gave it a go.

With averted vision it was clearly visible and you could make out the bright core of M51 and its companion.

I then moved onto M81/82 and these were easy to see in the 32mm eyepiece together. They were very bright with the cigar galaxy the clearest I have seen it. The larger galaxy was easy to spot and I could see both with direct vision.

I then moved onto M101 and I could not see a thing. I knew I was in the right place as my Goto was spot on, for a change, so I attached the 400d and managed to pick up the shot at the bottom. It is not great but I was pleased as I had never managed to get anywhere near M101 before. I think this is one of my favourite galaxys through a camera and although my image is not great I was pleased with the outcome.

I was going to to try for M97 (owl) but Cartes Du Ciel did not show it so I moved on and noticed that to the South Jupiter was clear. Unfortnately I could not see Jupiter through the scopes due to the house roof which was a shame as it was as it highest that I have seen this year, at least to me anyway.

However, I finished on a high as I saw that Cartes Du Ciel was showing Neptune as visible. I thought it was a long shot and I slewed the scope round and WOW. a blue planet, pretty small but a definite disc and one that I have never seen before.

I looked through both the 200p and C80ED at the planet and I felt that the 200p gave a better view due to the image scale.

It was a great view and I am glad to added another solar system object to the list.

After that I was getting tired, my Canon400d battery had run out and the sky looked just a little overcast with light wispy cloud so I decided to call it a night.

Overall it was an excellent night of viewing and I enjoyed the visual aspect for a change as I usually just go straight for the camera.

I would definiately recommend Ursa Major. There are so many objects to see in such a small area of the sky, I was only looking within 'the Plough' and this was a great nights worth of viewing.

Have fun.

[Beyond_Vision]

A great report Beamer it sounds like you had a memorable evening

Regards

Kevin

[Sam]

Nice report Beamer, it's a great part of the sky around Ursa Major, loads of galaxies and of course the owl nebula. Good job on bagging M101, it's a very photogenic galaxy!

Sam

[ashenlight]

Lovely report Beamer, sounds like you had a great night. I agree with you on Ursa Major, there's so many beautiful objects in there, no to mention Mizar and Alcor - stunning through a scope. I've been keeping my observing sessions to one area of the sky lately, not just slewing over there, over here etc. Seems to make for a much more productive night if I focus my energies on a specific area. Well done for bagging all those objects in one night

[barkis]

A great account of your nights observations Luke.

Viewing reports are a great stimulus for others, and are always welcome on the forum.

Ron.

[Talitha]

Great report, and congratulations on seeing Neptune for the first time!

M101 looks like a patch of fog, and can be easy to miss even when it's in the middle of the fov. Here' a little trick i learned a number of years ago while working the two Herschel 400 lists in tandem, constellation by constellation. Took almost four years to complete the project but wow, what a learning experience.

If you're positive the target is in the fov, power down to the widest fov ep you've got, re-focus if needed, and then tap the OTA hard enough to make the stars dance around. A moving target's easier to see than a stationary one, and if your target is possible (depending on scope, conditions, etc) you might detect your target with averted vision. I bagged quite a number of stubborn little smudgies with this technique.

Beautiful image, btw. Always nice to see a bit of show-and-tell in reports.

[ashenlight]

That's such a great tip Carol... I'll put that to use next time I'm out, could become very useful for those stubborn planetary nebs.

[Talitha]

OTA tapping works well for galaxies, but stubborn Pnebs don't come out to play without an O-III filter.

[Doc]

Lovely report and well done on seeing Neptune. I also saw Neptune that night and as you say a little blue disk resolves with enough power. I thought it was mmore greeny blue then blue.

A wonderful read.