Meade Lightbridge Observing report as of 6.3.2010

[Doc]

6.3.2010

Meade Lightbridge 16" F4.5 FL 1829mm.

No Moon.

LM 4.6.

Very good seeing.

Started off in Lepus as I read in Astronomy Now about a little planetary nebula that showed a red colour to it, this is very rare for a planetary nebula, the object of my search was IC418 aka the Spirograph Nebula or the Rassberry Nebula. With the 28 Uwan inserted it was impossible to make this object out but by swapping to the 16 Uwan at x114 I could just detect an object that looked non stellar, with an outer halo and a central star. With the 7 Uwan at x261 I could easily see the halo and what appeared a slight mottling type effect within it which could be where the nebula got it's name the Spirograph Nebula. This little planetary is small at only 0.2' x 0.23' in size but takes magnification very well. A slight green tint was visible but the red or pink you see in larger scopes was not visible.

M42 was best I've seen it this year, the green colour in the nebula just oozed out and a lighter brighter green appeared just above the Trapezium. Even the Ngc1980 nebula also appeared as green. In the 7 Uwan it was so easy to see stars E and F in the Trapezium this had to do with the sky conditions, as this was easily the clearest night I have had in a long time. I sketched two versions of the Orion Nebula one with 28 Uwan one with 7 Uwan. I will post these at a later date.

Staying in Orion I headed for the Monkey Nebula aka as Ngc 2174 and Ngc 2175. First off the number of stars is astonishing so many different types and sizes the mind boggles the 28 Uwan at x 65 gave me a fantastic view of this very dense part of the sky. With the Baader O111 filter attached I instantly saw a faint circular glow I would estimate about 30' in diameter over the area I had picked out for this object. I double checked by removing the filter and it dissappeared so there was defintely something there.

M46 in Puppis was next and what a great sight in the 28 Uwan, a sea of really dim stars I estimate at least 100 was seen all stars being very dim at least mag 10. This cluster is believed to be around 300 million years old. It is 30 light-years across and is located approximately 5,400 light-years from the Earth. Through the 16 uwan I was able to detect on the northern edge of M46 the planetary nebula Ngc 2438. It looked like a oval glow with no colour and at only 1.1' on diameter very small. The contrast appeared greater with the O111 filter inserted, a very pretty sight indeed.

Up to Leo next and the awesome galaxy Ngc2903. Through the 28 Uwan I could detect an elongated oval smudge with a brighter core visible. Stood out very well against the background thanks to the Baader Neodymium filter.

Next on my list was an object I've tried to see on numerous occasions but it always elluded me that is Ngc2346 a Planetary Nebula in Monoceros. This planetary is small at just 0.83' x 1.0' in size and shines at mag 12, I had no chance with my 28 Uwan all objects looked stellar, even through the 16 Uwan I could still detect nothing. When I placed in the 7 uwan at x261 and double stacked the O111 and Neodymium filters onto the eyepiece and scanned the stars around where it should be I could just detect an out of focus looking star, I knew it was Ngc2346 as the other stars looked pretty sharp and this didn't. It seemed alot smaller then it's 1'x0.83' size, to double check I took out O111 filter and it became almost invisible.

Next I could see the Virgo cluster of galaxies start appearing they were not really high enough to see great detail but I easily managed to see M85 and M49. I'm not counting these off my Messier list just yet, even though I've never seen these before as I think they need more observation when they get higher in the sky.

Over to Ursa Major next and the famous Owl Nebula, M97. This planetary nebula got its name from the two round dark regions, which resemble the eyes of an owl. It is one of the fainter objects in the Messier catalog with a magnitude of only 9.9. The structure of M97 is the unusually complex for a planetary nebula. It is illuminated by a 16th magnitude star at its center. As with most planetary nebulae, its distance is not certain. Best guesses place it at about 2,600 light-years from Earth. I could see it pretty easy in my 28 Uwan but by inserting the O111 filter this object becomes very easy to see. Through the 16 Uwan with O111 fitted I could detect one of the Owl's eyes and a green tint to the nebula became visible.

I have never seen it's companion galaxy M108 but with the Neodymium inserted into the 28 Uwan it became visible in the same field of view as the Owl nebula, what a fantastic sight that was. M108 turned out to be a long thin smudge, I could detect no central core. Its distance from Earth is believed to be about 45 million light-years and it shines at mag 10.

By now it was about 23.30 and i was getting cold so called it a night.

[DarkerSky]

Brilliant report Mick...and congrats at bagging M108. I know you have found it elusive in the past. How long have you had the Neodymium filter? I don't have one, but I think after your report I might just get one as it seems to do the trick for fainter galaxies.

I was observing NGC 2903 earlier last week. It is a beautiful galaxy in the 16" IMO. Did you get the brighter area to the north of the core?

IC 418 is quite a catch too. Sadly I dont have a good southern horizon for Lepus.

[Doc]

Cheers DS.

I do struggle with galaxies but since I got the neodymium filter a few weeks ago it had defintely helped. You will be amazed at how much contrast it gives.

I didn't note the brighter area in Ngc2093 but it looked fantastic.

I've posted a few sketches of M42 as well.

[Jupiter Martin]

Great report Mick that sounded a great nights viewing you had.

[SAB]

Enjoyed reading that, thanks for posting! IC 418 is an oddity, I see it as white while other observers have reported blue and even a purplish tint. I've never seen the red that some people report.

[iamjulian]

Great list of views. I like the way you say it was starting to get cold at 23.30 It was already well below zero at about 7pm! You must have been wearing a few layers.

[Doc]

Enjoyed reading that, thanks for posting! IC 418 is an oddity, I see it as white while other observers have reported blue and even a purplish tint. I've never seen the red that some people report.

I've heard you need at least 24" of aperture to pull out the rasberry colour within it. I detected a very dim green but it was only with the odd glimpse that it showed any.

[Doc]

Great list of views. I like the way you say it was starting to get cold at 23.30 It was already well below zero at about 7pm! You must have been wearing a few layers.

LOL only my thermals and my beloved RAB Artic coat, so I was nice and warm