by Tom Campbell
| Observer | Tom Campbell |
|---|---|
| Location | Iola, Kansas (Long: 95°24'W Lat: 37°55'N) |
| Equipment | 8" Discovery DHQ dob |
| Eyepieces | 1.25" Plössls - 25mm (49x), 15mm (81x), 10mm (122x), 6.5mm (188x), 4mm (305x) |
| Time | 9:25pm - 10:30pm CDT (02:25-03:30 UT) |
| Transparency | Clear (8/10) |
| Seeing | Moderately Stable (6/10) |
| Weather | Temperatures in the 50s. There was a slight, but cool, breeze. |
| AURIGA | Theta |
|---|---|
| CANCER | Iota, Zeta |
| COMA BERENICES | 24 |
| HERCULES | Kappa |
| LYNX | 12, 19, 38 |
Until I finished last week, I had spent the last few months concentrating heavily on the Messier observing list. Because of this, my Double Star list had fallen into neglect. I even let a few of them slip away from me for the year. It was now time to catch up a bit. The waxing crescent Moon would be providing a fair bit of light pollution, so this was the perfect night for observing doubles.
We've received several inches of rain in the last couple of weeks (including about a half inch this morning), so the ground was pretty muddy. I threw a ground cover tarp over the spot where I wanted to set up, and then set my telescope up on top of it. Now I was ready to observe.
| Theta | Auriga | Double Star | 9:25pm CDT |
|---|---|---|---|
| 37 | RA: 0559.7 | Dec: +3713 | Mag: 2.6, 7.1 |
| At 305x, the dim companion can be easily seen, hovering close to the bright main star. The primary is white and the secondary star is slightly yellowish. | |||
| Iota | Cancer | Double Star | 9:30pm CDT |
| 48 | RA: 0846.7 | Dec: +2846 | Mag: 4.2, 6.6 |
| This is a wide double, easily split at 49x. It was also easy to find, despite a waxing crescent Moon being nearby. The brighter star is yellow-white and the companion has a bluish cast to it. It is a lovely double, and would make a nice Spring showpiece. | |||
| Zeta | Cancer | Double Star | 9:35pm CDT |
| 16 | RA: 0812.2 | Dec: +1739 | Mag: 5.6, 6.0 |
| This double is a little tighter than Iota, but not nearly as impressive. Both stars are yellow-white, with one being a little brighter. 122x offers a nice view. | |||
| 24 | Coma Berenices | Double Star | 9:45pm CDT |
| RA: 1235.1 | Dec: +1823 | Mag: 5.2, 6.7 | |
| This is another blue/gold pair with a wide separation. The blue star is a little dimmer. At 49x, the stars are easily split. It is a beautiful binary. It amazes me to think of how many blue/yellow binary systems exist. | |||
| Kappa | Hercules | Double Star | 9:55pm CDT |
| 7 | RA: 1608.1 | Dec: +1703 | Mag: 5.3, 6.5 |
| This is another wide double. There is about a magnitude of difference between the stars. The brighter star is yellow, and the dimmer one is yellow-orange. Slightly defocusing the stars allowed me to determine the colors better. This isn't a bad-looking pair, but the lack of color contrast took away some of its potential. | |||
| 19 | Lynx | Double Star | 10:05pm CDT |
| RA: 0722.9 | Dec: +5517 | Mag: 5.6, 6.5 | |
| This double is fairly insignificant. Both stars are about the same magnitude, and appear white. One of the stars may have a touch of bluish tint. The pair is easily spotted, due to its location in a fairly sparse part of the sky. Even at 49x, the pair is wide and easily split. | |||
| 12 | Lynx | Double Star | 10:15pm CDT |
| RA: 0646.2 | Dec: +5927 | Mag: 5.4, 7.3 | |
| This double is a bit more interesting than the last one. There is a couple of magnitudes of difference between the pair. The brighter star is milky-white and the fainter companion is yellow-white. These stars are close enough that it makes a pretty pair. | |||
| 38 | Lynx | Double Star | 10:20pm CDT |
| RA: 0918.8 | Dec: +3648 | Mag: 3.9, 6.6 | |
| This is a fairly tight double. 188x resolves it nicely, however. There is quite a bit of difference in magnitude between the two stars. The brighter star is white or blue-white, and the companion is Harvest Moon orange. The color contrast makes this binary pair beautiful. | |||
Wow! I made quite a bit of progress on my Doubles list tonight. There were a few more that were just getting off the horizon, but the cool dampness in the air made me decide to pack it in early.