Another one bites the dust (well, two, actually)
Cloudy last night, which was a bit of a relief since I got to catch up on my sleep.
Sunday night (two nights ago) it was very clear and dark, but bitter cold. I got the chance to observe for quite a while, but I got quite frustrated. First I looked at Machholz, then M1 again (which was visible, but only just.) Then I spent my remaining time looking for M81 and M82 in Ursa Major. I kept running up to my apartment to consult the detailed chart I had assembled from DSS pics. It showed an asterism I think of as the "open box" just north of 28 UMa, which in turn is just northeast of bright 23 UMa in the Bear's head. The open box was easy to find, and my chart showed a diagonal line through the middle of the box and out its bottom would point straight at M81 in about 3 box lengths. I scoured the area and compared it to my chart, but kept getting lost. Finally I looked on SkyMap and noticed that the pointer stars I had been using pointed nowhere; a much better pointer pair would be the two stars along the top of the box, which pointed to M81 in about 5 box-lengths. I realized what had happened: in the M81 galaxy group are a number of NGC objects, and I had lined up one (the one poined to by the diagonal) on one image with another one (the one right next to M81) on another. So my sky "photo" was completely misleading. I got a better one off of the DSS and ran downstairs to try and relocate the box asterism before clouds moved in. I got to the scope and found the box all right, but- arrgh!- it dimmed out behind clouds as I watched. They were thick clouds too, and no signs of breaks, so I wasn't going to be able to wait them out. I was frustrated, though... I hand't got the chance to look at anything rewardingly dazzling like Orion because I got so lost.
Fortunately the next nuight was clear, but I was absolutely dead tired when I got home... this was the first night of my 10-hour shift. Still, I got the scope outside to cool, checked my email, and in a half hour I was down in the parking lot.
I didn't want to be shut out again. On the long bus ride home I'd remembered there were some easy bags in Cassiopeia I'd never looked at. A quick check of SkyMap confirmed M103 to be only a little more than a degree above delta Cassiopeiae. Soon I was looking at the appropriate region, and there was a knot of stars centered around a flattened isosceles triangle in the middle of my view which I assumed was M103. Subsequent checks confirmed this. However, there was another knot, similar in appearance but smaller and dimmer, about a half a degree further away from delta. SkyMap plots nothing there; I'll have to look into it further and find out what it is. The whole area is very rich in stars; it'd be easy to start seeing clusters in any random clumps after a while.
Orion was so temptingly bright I had to look. Each time I look and compare it to photos i think I can see more detail.
Next I tried M67 in Cancer, which should be a fairly easy find straight down from Praesepe (M44), but I didn't memorize the exact starhop from alpha Cancri, and I was getting tired, so I moved on to the goal I was most excited about.
Okay, there's the Dipper. now, there's 23 UMa, the back of the Bear's ear. Left and down a little to the pair including 28 UMa, then a little left to the "open box". Follow the pointer stars about five box widths... few stars in this area, easy to get lost, might have to backtrack and find landmarks....
That won't be necessary. M81 is there in all its resplendent glory, easy now that i know where to look. M82 is a ghostly dash just to its upper right. Both fit easily into the field with my 20mm lens. Absolutely gorgeous, but I'm so sleep-deprived my vision is slarting to blur. Nevertheless I have to linger as long as i can. It's the same sensation after climbing, say, Mount Si: You know you have to come down, but you put so much effort into getting here, and it's just so gosh darn beautiful.
I'd like to hunt down the NGC's in the area, but I'd also like to just appreciate the view of M81 once more. Can't wait to see it again.
We are the champions: M103, M44, M81, M82
No time for losers: M67
Sunday night (two nights ago) it was very clear and dark, but bitter cold. I got the chance to observe for quite a while, but I got quite frustrated. First I looked at Machholz, then M1 again (which was visible, but only just.) Then I spent my remaining time looking for M81 and M82 in Ursa Major. I kept running up to my apartment to consult the detailed chart I had assembled from DSS pics. It showed an asterism I think of as the "open box" just north of 28 UMa, which in turn is just northeast of bright 23 UMa in the Bear's head. The open box was easy to find, and my chart showed a diagonal line through the middle of the box and out its bottom would point straight at M81 in about 3 box lengths. I scoured the area and compared it to my chart, but kept getting lost. Finally I looked on SkyMap and noticed that the pointer stars I had been using pointed nowhere; a much better pointer pair would be the two stars along the top of the box, which pointed to M81 in about 5 box-lengths. I realized what had happened: in the M81 galaxy group are a number of NGC objects, and I had lined up one (the one poined to by the diagonal) on one image with another one (the one right next to M81) on another. So my sky "photo" was completely misleading. I got a better one off of the DSS and ran downstairs to try and relocate the box asterism before clouds moved in. I got to the scope and found the box all right, but- arrgh!- it dimmed out behind clouds as I watched. They were thick clouds too, and no signs of breaks, so I wasn't going to be able to wait them out. I was frustrated, though... I hand't got the chance to look at anything rewardingly dazzling like Orion because I got so lost.
Fortunately the next nuight was clear, but I was absolutely dead tired when I got home... this was the first night of my 10-hour shift. Still, I got the scope outside to cool, checked my email, and in a half hour I was down in the parking lot.
I didn't want to be shut out again. On the long bus ride home I'd remembered there were some easy bags in Cassiopeia I'd never looked at. A quick check of SkyMap confirmed M103 to be only a little more than a degree above delta Cassiopeiae. Soon I was looking at the appropriate region, and there was a knot of stars centered around a flattened isosceles triangle in the middle of my view which I assumed was M103. Subsequent checks confirmed this. However, there was another knot, similar in appearance but smaller and dimmer, about a half a degree further away from delta. SkyMap plots nothing there; I'll have to look into it further and find out what it is. The whole area is very rich in stars; it'd be easy to start seeing clusters in any random clumps after a while.
Orion was so temptingly bright I had to look. Each time I look and compare it to photos i think I can see more detail.
Next I tried M67 in Cancer, which should be a fairly easy find straight down from Praesepe (M44), but I didn't memorize the exact starhop from alpha Cancri, and I was getting tired, so I moved on to the goal I was most excited about.
Okay, there's the Dipper. now, there's 23 UMa, the back of the Bear's ear. Left and down a little to the pair including 28 UMa, then a little left to the "open box". Follow the pointer stars about five box widths... few stars in this area, easy to get lost, might have to backtrack and find landmarks....
That won't be necessary. M81 is there in all its resplendent glory, easy now that i know where to look. M82 is a ghostly dash just to its upper right. Both fit easily into the field with my 20mm lens. Absolutely gorgeous, but I'm so sleep-deprived my vision is slarting to blur. Nevertheless I have to linger as long as i can. It's the same sensation after climbing, say, Mount Si: You know you have to come down, but you put so much effort into getting here, and it's just so gosh darn beautiful.
I'd like to hunt down the NGC's in the area, but I'd also like to just appreciate the view of M81 once more. Can't wait to see it again.
We are the champions: M103, M44, M81, M82
No time for losers: M67
posted by Pete in Space at 9:07 AM
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