galaxies *for seeing structure*

[jonstarrysky]

Any suggestioins for a top 10 (or more!) ?

Like many others I have observed scores of galaxies in my modest sized scope (10"). But have I seen spiral arms, dust lanes, structural details outside the core etc ??? - the answer to that we all know the reality. There are a few exceptions eg M51 averted vision some perception of spiral arms. The other day I was picking up details in the outer regions of NGC2403.....

Suggestions folks ? Or do I resign to seeing only the fuzzy core when it comes to galaxies ?

[Talitha]

How about the mottling in M82?

[Capricorn]

I suspect that the problem is simply that in the great scheme of things a 10" scope is small.

Have occasionally managed to view through a 14" and generally just a disk shaped fuzz. No real detail such as easily discernable arms etc.

This thing called an atmosphere doesn't help much either. It scatters light no matter how good conditions are.

[jonstarrysky]

....mottling in M82. Thanks for that Talitha, will take a look. I like the Harrington book Star Watch, it lists the DSO with a visual rating, so will prioritize ones that are xxx and xxxx. Sombrero (M104) and M51 give up some detail and he rates as xxxx.

How about magnification for galaxies ??? Exit pupil of 3-4mm unless if very big eg M31, M33 in which case use widest poss eg 5-6mm exit pupil ...??

[DarkerSky]

With a 10", a dark sky and some patience thrown in the mix you'll see

some spirality in M33

dark dust lane intersecting NGC 891

mottling and dust lane in M82

interactive structure in NGC 4038 / 4039 ringtail galaxies

dust lane in NGC 4565

dust lane in M104 Sombrero galaxy

the 'black eye' dust lane in M64 Black Eye Galaxy

these are off the top of my head...there are probably more

[mdstuart]

Plus

M101 in good skies can show the spiral arms in a 10 inch,

M61 & M99 can sometimes hint at an arm.

I agree though the M51 arm between M51 and the other NGC galaxy is by far the easiest to pick out even in mag 5 skies.

What I love to do it spot the circular galaxies that have an even glow all the way accross (as compared to the normal brightening towards the core) and then check if they really are face on spirals. More often than not they are..

There is a wide variety in cores. Some are very bright compared to the rest of the galaxy and others are not..

They vary greatly in shape and size which is interesting to log.

They sometimes come in pairs or threes which is also facinating to observe..

Mottling is another one I find hard to pick out. I can see it in M82 but I struggle in others like M63 etc. I think this is a practice thing..

Just remembered M83, both spiral arms are possible...apparantly but I have not yet seen this!

Mark

So you can pick up

[Hypernova]

The closest I have come to observing structure in galaxies is the strong mottling along M82, it is quite apparent even from my relatively light polluted skies. I did observe M51 a few nights a go and saw what looked to be variations in brightness across it's face, it was not definite and could just have been misting of eyepiece or something.

So far I haven't managed to see structure in any of the galaxies listed above, I have managed to observe most of them but have not seem anything in the way of detail, very much the faint fuzzy that we all know.

I have never got to even see NGC 891 from my site, not a hint of it at all in my dob. I have spent ages looking in the same place for it but it never materialises, I suspect that my skies are too bright to allow it to shine through, even with 8" of aperture.

[mdstuart]

Hypernova

Try using the lowest power you can on NGC 891 nwhen it is right overhead. Thats what it took for me with my 10 inch in mag 5 skies...

Enjoy the occultation!

Mark

[Talitha]

How about magnification for galaxies ??? Exit pupil of 3-4mm unless if very big eg M31, M33 in which case use widest poss eg 5-6mm exit pupil ...??

Basically, i start out at low power and slowly increase the magnification until there's a loss of detail detected. I've also noticed that i can use slightly higher than normal power when the transparency is better than average. The cleaner air probably allows the details to come through even though the exit pupil is smaller than what i'd normally be able to use.

[mdstuart]

I would add that many of the smaller fainter galaxies just do not show up at lower power (less than 70x) or at best they look like faint stars. When I move up to x150 they are then visible. Even at 150x some a pretty small about the size of a very small pea or piece of rice!

Mark

[Hypernova]

Hypernova

Try using the lowest power you can on NGC 891 nwhen it is right overhead. Thats what it took for me with my 10 inch in mag 5 skies...

Enjoy the occultation!

Mark

Cheers Mark,

I'll try for it with the 32mm the next time we have a clear and moonless night up here.

I have tried mainly in 14mm to get a darker sky background to improve contrast but it obviously isn't working.

[gliderpilot]

Try NGC604, a star forming region in M33 similar to the orion nebula but umpteen million light years away in another galaxy. I picked it up in my 8.5" newt from my garden observatory so it's quite observable.

Mark