'Hobbit' Galaxies Discovered

[Kain]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/space/20070116/sc_space/newhobbitgalaxiesdiscoveredaroundmilkyway

[FLO]

'Hobbit' galaxies

[Kain]

I know, the Woses Galaxies sound much better!

Kain

[The Warthog]

So, like, how many stars do these puppies have? In the pictures they look like open clusters. Are these totally new discoveries, or have they been misidentified in the past? Can you see them with a 6" scope, visually?

[Kain]

I know Leo 1 is to the right of Regulus, but the light from Regulus makes it difficult to view.

I would say you can see that just about, as it's mentioned in my deep sky observers book.

Kain

[Astroman]

So, like, how many stars do these puppies have? In the pictures they look like open clusters. Are these totally new discoveries, or have they been misidentified in the past? Can you see them with a 6" scope, visually?

Not too sure about the new Hobbit galaxies, but the known dwarf galaxies will hold tens of millions of stars or less, depending on the size. These are new discoveries, as the images from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey are just being reduced. I doubt very much you could see them in a 6", though I assume you're being facetious. I remember once looking for the Sagittarius Dwarf with the 28" for an hour or so, only to discover we were seeing it, but didn't recognize it because of its size and diffuseness, or low surface brightness. Same for the Draco dwarf.